North Island brown kiwi ‘no longer threatened’
After years in decline, kiwi numbers are bouncing back thanks to intensive conservation efforts by the Government and volunteers.
The good news for New Zealand’s national bird was revealed in the Department of Conservation’s report into the conservation status of birds.
Of the five species of kiwi, the North Island brown kiwi is faring best.
Its numbers have grown to more than 20,000, which saw it reclassified from ‘‘at risk – declining’’ to ‘‘no longer threatened’’, with its population expected to grow by more than 10 per cent over the next three generations.
That status change came with the important caveat that it was dependent on ongoing conservation intervention, DOC chief science adviser Hugh Robertson said. ‘‘There’s still a huge battle to be fought, but this is hugely encouraging.’’
Robertson has been working with kiwi for more than 30 years, and said a lot of work had gone into bringing the national bird back from the brink.
Being flightless grounddwelling birds had not helped kiwi survive, especially with the introduction of predators such as stoats, rats and ferrets preying on nests and young hatchlings.
If left to their own devices, kiwi chicks only have a five per cent chance of surviving to adulthood in the wild. But with interventions such as Operation Nest Egg – where eggs were taken from wild nests, hatched and raised in captivity before being released into the wild – the survival chances go up to 30-50 per cent, Robertson said.
Intensive trapping, as well as the establishment of breeding programmes and pest-free areas, had also been a boon.
And the efforts to save the kiwi had flow-on effects for many other birds, with the reduction in predators helping other species to thrive as well, he said.