Wellingtonians urged to become guardians for kiwi
The reintroduction of the first wild kiwi to the western hills of Wellington in about 100 years is a ‘‘huge milestone, but also in some ways, it’s just the start line’’, the founder of the project to bring the national icon back to the nation’s capital says.
Eleven kiwi – including breeding pairs and those who are yet to find mates – were released into the Ma¯kara hills on Saturday afternoon.
Paul Ward, who spearheaded the Capital Kiwi Project, said those behind the release got the kiwi in their burrows then popped over to nearby Karori for a kebab. They returned after nightfall to open the hatches.
Some just poked their noses out, but others ventured out.
The rain had brought out some earthworms and we¯ta¯ could be heard, giving them a ‘‘smorgasbord for breakfast’’, Ward said.
They are the first of 250 kiwi that will be released into 23,000 hectares of predator-free land spanning the city’s west and south over the next six years.
Ward said having kiwi back in the region was ‘‘awesome’’, but also put the pressure on Wellingtonians to look after the tenacious native icons.
‘‘We hope that they’ll find themselves a very happy home in these manuka [covered], scrubby, very Wellington hills. Hopefully they’ll start breeding pretty soon.’’
When they started dispersing they would end up in areas closer to the city over the coming years – the fringes of Karori, Te Kopahou Reserve, Ma¯ kara Peak.
‘‘Our job really is to work with those communities in the same way we’ve worked with Ma¯ kara . . . to get them ready to be kiwi guardians,’’ Ward said.