Opotiki kiwi care

Date: 21 July 2008

Over 50 people took the opportunity to watch a kiwi being returned to its home area on a recent sunny Sunday.

Department of Conservation (DOC) Ranger, Greg Moorcroft said that it was great to get such a brilliant turn-out of people with a keen interest in Bank of New Zealand Save the Kiwi activity.

DOC Ranger Greg Moorcroft with the
kiwi before its release

"The kiwi had been caught on private land close to town in a leg-hold trap set for possums. Fortunately the trapper brought the injured bird into the Opotiki DOC Office. Opotiki Veterinary Clinic staff were able to confirm that there no broken bones, so we took the kiwi to Rosemary Tully of Whakatane Bird Rescue so it could recover from the injury. When it had recovered, we invited people to come out with us when we returned the kiwi to its home and were pleasantly surprised to get such a good crowd," Mr Moorcroft said.

DOC staff took the opportunity to pass on some simple tips that people can use to help protect kiwi. Mr Moorcroft demonstrated methods for setting up possum traps in a way that can ensure they do not pose a threat to kiwi or other flightless birds such as weka that are also present in parts of the Opotiki District. Rosemary Tully described how she cared for the injured bird and local Bank of New Zealand staff were present to help distribute posters and brochures with information on kiwi. One particularly useful promotional item handed out to people was a compact disk of different kiwi calls to give people an idea of what to listen for. DOC staff asked for anyone who hears kiwi calls to contact the Opotiki Area office so a clearer picture can be built of the numbers and distribution of the birds in the district.

"People in Opotiki are really lucky in having kiwi living throughout the district, including close to town, something really rare in the rest of New Zealand. One of the simplest ways to protect kiwi is to keep dogs tied up at night when the birds are likely to be feeding. This is especially important for anyone who lives near bush areas," Mr Moorcroft said.

The mix of dogs and kiwi is particularly unfortunate. The kiwi's distinctive smell is very easy for a dog to track. In addition, being without wing muscles to protect it, the kiwi's chest structure is easily crushed. A dog can kill a kiwi simply by picking it up in its mouth. In 1987, one dog living wild in Waitangi State Forest killed an estimated 500 kiwi in just six weeks.

Amber and her Dad, Shane McAteer
marvelling at the size of a kiwi egg

The Opotiki kiwi coped well with being inspected by the crowd before it was taken away for release into a burrow that had been previously prepared by Mr Moorcroft. The bird has a radio transmitter attached to it so DOC staff can monitor its progress and movements.

"It was great to get such a good crowd of people all interested in seeing this kiwi. Our hope is that this interest will extend to taking practical actions to help protect these special birds," Mr Moorcroft said.

Background information

Bank of New Zealand Save the Kiwi Trust was established in November 2002 by Bank of New Zealand and the Department of Conservation, building on a sponsorship relationship that started in 1991. BNZ Save the Kiwi Trust is responsible for public awareness and education, fundraising, sponsorship and grant allocations for kiwi recovery nationally. In 2008 alone, almost $1 million was allocated to community and DOC kiwi projects. This money came from Bank of New Zealand, its staff, customers and supporters of BNZ Save the Kiwi Trust.

BNZ Operation Nest Egg™ is a powerful tool to reverse the decline of key kiwi populations. Eggs and chicks are harvested from nests to save them from stoats and cats. The young kiwi are returned to the wild when they weight about 1kg, big enough to fight off these predators. More than 1000 kiwi chicks have been returned to the wild since the programme began in 1994, with captive facilities and hundreds of field workers from DOC and community groups throughout the country contributing to its success. The BNZ Operation Nest Egg™ egg harvesting/chick rearing/return to the wild technique was developed through research funded solely by Bank of New Zealand and is now also used in other species recovery programmes.

Bank of New Zealand Save the Kiwi Trust: Michelle Impey: +64 9 375 1084, +64 29 478 4610