Rowi conservation

There is one natural population of about >600 rowi (Apteryx rowi) in Ōkārito forest and surrounds in South Westland. Ōkārito was designated as one of the five special Kiwi Sanctuaries in 2000. Rowi can also be found on Mana Island which operates as a kōhanga, providing a safe breeding site since 2012. Birds could previously be found on two predator free islands in the Malbrough Sounds, but they have since been returned home to South Westland.

Unlike some other kiwi species, male and female rowi both take turns incubating their eggs. Although they do not rely on their parents for food and protection (all kiwi chicks are self-sufficient as soon as they hatch), rowi juveniles often stay with their family group for years.

Rowi are slow breeders, normally laying just one egg per year – making the death of an adult bird more devastating to the population.

Rowi footprint
Image: Carrie Shores-Laithwaite | DOC

Management in the wild

Since 2021, rowi conservation has increasingly focused on on-site management, with all chick monitoring taking place in the wild since 2024. This approach allows researchers to measure chick survival in their natural habitat following the introduction of intensive predator control.

Shortly after hatching, monitored chicks are fitted with a small radio transmitter. Rangers track their growth and survival until they reach about 1.2 kg, a weight at which they are more resilient to predators. This can take up to a year.

Once chicks reach this weight, their transmitters are removed and many are moved to new sites to help establish additional rowi populations and spread genetic diversity.

The goal is to increase the population from 600 birds to 800 by 2028 and 900 by 2030.

Operation Nest Egg

The biggest threat to rowi survival is stoats. Trapping failed to stop the stoats, and rowi numbers were declining quickly. With the support of Save the Kiwi, DOC established Operation Nest Egg (ONE) in 1995.

Operation Nest Egg involves removing eggs from the risk of predation, hatching them in captivity, and placing the chicks in a predator free environment until they are big enough to fend for themselves (between 1 to 1.2 kg). They are then returned to the wild.

Unmanaged, a tiny proportion of kiwi eggs produce an adult bird.

The programme played a major role in the recovery of rowi and was used from 1995 to 2024. Today, successful predator control by Predator Free South Westland allows rowi chicks to remain in the wild.

Predator Free South Westland

Predator Free South Westland (PFSW) aims to remove stoats, rats, and possums from 113,000 hectares between the Southern Alps and the Tasman Sea. Zero Invasive Predators Ltd (ZIP) delivers this work on behalf of project partners.

The project expanded into South Ōkārito in 2021, providing greater protection for rowi. Natural barriers such as mountains and rivers, combined with traps, bait stations, and remote detection cameras, help prevent pests from re-entering the area.

As of 2026, part of the project covers North and South Ōkārito and the Burster Range, where rowi have distributed naturally and where birds have also been translocated.

New populations

Rowi that have come through ONE have been used to establish new populations on pest free islands. Mana Island is one of these, and in 2016 we confirmed the first rowi breeding there. Islands can however be limiting because adult kiwi need very large territories. 

New populations have also been established in the surrounding South Westland area in the Omoeroa ranges and within the Burster range by translocating ONE and on-site monitored chicks to these new locations.

Group effort

We work with several partners and groups to help rowi.

• Our key partner is Te Rūnanga o Makaawhio and Ngāi Tahu, who we work with to make decisions on the future of rowi management.
• Predator Free South Westland (PFSW), which provides safer habitat for rowi in their natural range.
• Zero Invasive Predators Ltd, which carries out predator control operations on behalf of PFSW and their partners.
• Air New Zealand, which transports sick and injured rowi for veterinary care.
• South Island Wildlife Hospital, which provides specialist treatment for injured and unwell birds.

Intelligent transmitters

Using the latest monitoring technology, we can keep a close eye on rowi. DOC has worked with a private business to develop ground-breaking technology specifically for our kiwi conservation work.

To track rowi, transmitters are attached to their legs. By monitoring the bird’s activity levels, these intelligent transmitters tell us where the bird is, when an egg is laid and when a chick hatches.

A system for data collection (nicknamed ‘Sky Ranger’) involves a program fitted to a fixed wing plane that flies over the forest searching for signals. This means transmitter signals, that might have taken 45 days of groundwork to complete, can now be gathered during a two-hour flight. The information collected lets us know what pairs are incubating and when we should begin monitoring the chick. 

Improvements in chick transmitter technology mean chicks can be monitored with less disturbance, as rangers can track their activity from a distance.

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