Rainbow Springs' Kiwi Encounter has hatched its first ginger coloured kiwi.
The little kiwi chick with an unusual ginger tinge to its feathers has just been released to Wairakei Golf and Sanctuary Kiwi Creche in Taupo after hatching at Rainbow Springs' Kiwi Encounter.
The kiwi, called Kindara, is sponsored by Tauhara College in Taupo, and is named after their school and their sister school Kindai in Japan.
Kindara will stay at Wairakei until it weighs 1kg, before going to the Karioi Rahui Reserve on the southern slopes of Mt Ruapehu.
Kiwi Encounter kiwi husbandry manager Claire Travers said she had never seen a kiwi chick with such ginger colouring.
"It's very cute," she said.
Kiwi Creche Sanctuary owner Gary Lane built a predator-proof fence around some of his land to offer a safe, natural environment to nurture kiwi chicks to a healthy weight, increasing their chances of survival in the wild.
Currently only 5 per cent of kiwi chicks survive in the wild, with stoats and dogs their main predators, he said.
Kariori Rahui is one of five national kiwi sanctuaries where DOC staff collect eggs and take them to Rainbow Springs' Kiwi Encounter for hatching.
Once the chick reaches 400g it's released at the Wairakei Kiwi Creche and at a healthy 1kg in weight they are released into the wild.
To sponsor a kiwi visit www.rainbowsprings.co.nz.