First spring kiwi hatches at Pukaha

CUTE: Pukaha Mount Bruce lead kiwi ranger Jess Flamy with the first kiwi chick of spring, hatched September 8 at 10.40am. PHOTO/SUPPLIED

Mount Bruce's first kiwi chick of spring was hatched this week, and three more eggs are in incubation, says general manager Helen Tickner.

Mrs Tickner said although she couldn't be there for the hatching, she still gets excited by new kiwi chicks at Pukaha Mount Bruce.

"It's one of those neat times of year when we start getting lots of birds laying eggs and now they're starting to hatch.

"We just need to keep an eye on it everyday to make sure it's breathing okay and is doing all the right kiwi things.

"Part of the reason we take the eggs out of the nest and hatch them in a nursery is because in the wild if a kiwi chick is lying in its burrow and absorbing the yolk and staying still, often their stomachs are distended and they can't actually stand up, and this makes them really really prone to predation," she said.

Mrs Tickner said that soon the kiwi chick would be introduced to food at the nursery.

"At 12 each day, we feed the chicks and that gives an opportunity for people to see a kiwi chick and for us to talk about kiwis and advocacy, and why it's important that we're doing what we're doing.

"When the kiwi chick reaches its hatch weight again and is looking really healthy, we put it into what we call our crate and then it will grow to 1.2kg which is the weight that it is big enough to fight off predators fairly successfully."

The kiwi chick is the 89th to hatch at Pukaha since 2009.

"We try hard not to give names to the kiwi although sometimes they end up with nicknames," Mrs Tickner said.

"Last year we nicknamed a chick Turbo as it hatched very quickly and then we had Valentine who hatched on Valentine's Day. However, usually the chicks have a numeric style name - this one is called MB89 as it's the 89th kiwi chick to hatch at Pukaha since 2009.

"The kiwi are wild animals and don't need to be given names. However, if we have a special event, Breadcraft Wild Challenge or our Annual Dinner, we will often give the opportunity for someone to name and help release a kiwi chick into the reserve."