Kiwi pukupuku take flight

Kiwi pukupuku / little spotted kiwi will move from Wellington ecosanctuary Zealandia to a new home in a historic first this May — a powerful symbol of success for urban wildlife restoration and species recovery.

Two decades after they were first reintroduced to the mainland, fifteen threatened kiwi pukupuku will leave Zealandia Te Māra a Tāne on 20 May to help supplement the population at Cape Sanctuary in the Hawke’s Bay.

This is the first time kiwi are being directly translocated out of Zealandia, marking a major milestone in the not-for-profit’s story. It highlights the success of this ambitious, groundbreaking community urban ecosanctuary just 25 years after the world-first predator-exclusion fence was completed.

Zealandia’s founding kiwi pukupuku population came from Kāpiti Island in 2000 and 2001. Ngāti Toa Rangatira and Ngāi Tahu are recognised as kaitiaki of kiwi pukupuku.

“These taonga have grown in numbers within the safety of our fence, and in the care of hundreds, if not thousands, of staff and volunteers over the years,” says Jo Ledington, Zealandia’s General Manager Conservation and Restoration.

“Having kiwi pukupuku at Zealandia has inspired thousands of visitors to care about this incredible rare species, and enabled people to reconnect with our national bird. We are proud to now be in a position to bolster other kiwi pukupuku populations around the country in partnership with Ngāti Toa, Ngāi Tahu, Taranaki Whānui and Ngāti Mihiroa,” she continues.

This project is a collaboration between Zealandia, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Taranaki Whānui ki te Upoko o te Ika, Ngai Tahu, Ngāti Mihiroa and Cape Sanctuary, as well as Kiwi Recovery and the Department of Conservation.

Ngāti Toa Rangatira representative and Karori Sanctuary Trust Board Chair, Russell Spratt, says “Ngāti Toa Rangatira are proud of the role Kāpiti Island has played in reviving kiwi pukupuku from near extinction.

“From a mere five individuals translocated to the motu in 1912, the population has grown to approximately 1,200 manu.

“Ngāti Toa see Kāpiti Island as a special place that has enabled kiwi pukupuku and other taonga species to thrive. Iwi consider it an honour to be the kaitiaki of these manu in partnership with DOC.

“Translocations such as this are conservation milestones which reinforce the cultural and spiritual connections between Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Kāpiti Island, and the broader efforts to restore native species to their ancestral lands.”

Zealandia is currently home to the second largest population of kiwi pukupuku after Kāpiti Island, and became home to the first mainland population of kiwi pukukpuku (since the 1880s) in 2000.

Zealandia’s kiwi pukupuku population has grown from 40 birds to an estimate of around 200, and surveys show that the population is in good physical and genetic health.

Kiwi pukupuku are the smallest of the five kiwi species and are very vulnerable to introduced predators. They were the only kiwi species that was completely lost from Aotearoa New Zealand’s mainland, and their numbers dropped down to less than ten birds in the 1910s.

Zealandia is now in a position to give back and help kiwi pukupuku at a national level by supplementing the population of kiwi at Cape Sanctuary in the Hawke’s Bay. The addition of kiwi from Zealandia will help with the genetic resilience of their population.

“Taranaki Whānui are honoured to support and witness the whakakāinga anō of kiwi pukupuku from the sanctuary,” says Terese McLeod, Taranaki Whānui representative and Zealandia’s Lead Ranger for Bicultural Engagement.

“When we think of these kiwi pukupuku and the haerenga of their tūpuna kiwi of Ngāi Tahu whakapapa from Te Waipounamu to Kāpiti Island, followed by a rōpū shared with Zealandia Te Māra a Tāne, and, now another generation of descendants being offered to the Cape Sanctuary in Hawke’s Bay – they have served and continue to serve an honourable role for Te Taiao across Aotearoa.”

Hariata Dawn Bennett, Cultural Liaison Cape Sanctuary, Ngāti Mihiroa, reflects on the significance of this milestone for her iwi and Cape Sanctuary. “This is a momentous moment for Ngāti Mihiroa and the Cape Sanctuary. It was the moemoea led by the late Hariata Te Ruru Akonga Mohi Baker to receive these kiwi pukupuku. We honour this dream and duty to devotedly care for these taonga.”

The kiwi will be carefully collected from Zealandia in accordance with Ngāti Toa and Taranaki Whānui tikanga and released on the same day at Cape Sanctuary. The birds being moved have been screened for disease and fitted with locator transmitters by certified kiwi handlers. 

You have the chance to see kiwi pukupuku on a Zealandia By Night tour within the safety of the Zealandia fence. These birds are different to the larger kiwi nui/North Island brown kiwi, which are showing up in Wellingtonians’ backyards thanks to the work of the wider Wellington community and Capital Kiwi.

• Zealandia Te Māra a Tāne is the world’s first fully-fenced urban ecosanctuary. The not-for-profit has a 500-year vision to restore a 225 hectare forest to its pre-human state and is 25 years into that mission.
• Because of Zealandia Te Māra a Tāne and our world-first fence, Wellington is one of the only cities in the world where bird biodiversity is on the rise. However, many vulnerable birds like kiwi pukupuku still need the protection provided by the fence.
• Kiwi pukupuku are the smallest of the five kiwi species and were the only species of kiwi to go extinct on the mainland in the early 1800s. Zealandia was the first mainland population of kiwi pukupuku since the early 1800s. Forty kiwi pukupuku were translocated to Zealandia over 2000 and 2001 from Kāpiti Island, after which rapid growth was seen in the population.
• Because kiwi pukupuku are the smallest of the kiwi species they are in many ways the most vulnerable. Other kiwi species are big enough to fend off introduced predators, such as stoats, when they are adult birds.