Kiwi are here: in Ōtari-Wilton’s Bush
We have kiwi!
Brown Kiwi, Photo Sara Tansy, The Capital Kiwi Project The pleasure of safeguarding Ōtari’s chicks, eggs and seedlings from animal predators has motivated volunteer trappers for nearly 20 years. That feel-good notion just ramped up big time, since a male brown kiwi with a transmitter was located near Ōtari’s Upper Blue Trail. This is the first kiwi to be found in the reserve in 150 years. Other sightings, in Ōtari and a nearby suburb, have also been reported. Ōtari Manager, Tim Park, is beyond excited. “Having these guys in the ecosystem again, it’s just beautiful. This is where they belong. We’re so grateful to our network of trappers for controlling stoats and other pests and keeping Ōtari safer for all the birds,” he adds. Thanks also to The Capital Kiwi Project for all your work – and let’s now work together to keep our kiwi and all our other taonga species safe. Please, keep your dogs on-leash, even if they’ve had kiwi-aversion training. And if you see an off-leash dog, politely ask the owner to leash it. It is very easy for a dog, no matter how well behaved, to kill or seriously injure a kiwi.
Posted: 7 May 2024