It's been a bumper breeding season for the threatened whio or blue duck, Conservation Department communications adviser Robyn Orchard says.
Lots of young ducklings have hatched successfully, in the wild and in captivity. More than 70 raised in captivity are to be released into the wild in March, Whio Awareness month.
Last week 17 young birds were let go in Egmont National Park.
Whio were extinct there in 2002 but, through the Whio Breed for Release Programme, the park now has a stable population of more than 100.
On March 25 another 10 birds are to be released in Tongariro National Park. There are 11 others available for release in the North Island at sites yet to be decided.
All the birds bred in captivity in the North Island are sent to the Tongariro National Trout Centre at Turangi for hardening up before they are released.
Another Whio Awareness month activity is the annual online Great Whio Adventure competition, which runs from March 2 to April 2.
The prize is five days of family fun in a national park, including a day out with whio rangers. The competition is in the form of a quiz, and children can enter once a week.
The future of the threatened species is looking brighter since the Conservation Department (DOC) partnered with electricity generator and retailer Genesis Energy to secure its survival. The estimated present population is less than 2500.
The native ducks can only live on clean, fast-flowing rivers that have a good supply of underwater insects. They also need an area free of stoats, ferrets and cats - their main predators. This is only achieved by extensive trapping.