A baby kiwi is strutting her stuff in the wild after being named and set free by supermodel Rachel Hunter.
Hunter named the 3-week-old kiwi Matariki, after the star cluster that signals the beginning of the Maori New Year, before releasing the chick on Motutapu Island in Auckland's Hauraki Gulf.
"I love the stars and I just thought it was fitting for her," said Hunter who was also influenced by the Maori story behind the name and a recent trip to Great Barrier Island, which has become a dark sky sanctuary.
"She's gorgeous, she's special. She was feisty on the way over [to Motutapu] and then a superstar when she came out [into the wild] and kind of just chilled out and fell asleep," she said.
A group, including people from the Department of Conservation (DOC), Motutapu Restoration Trust and local iwi Ngai Tai Ki Tamaki, gathered to watch and help Hunter release the kiwi into the bush.
"I'm very, very honoured and very, very lucky," she said.