Kiwi in Waikato: Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari kickstarts biggest translocation

Hot air balloons were not alone in the skies above Waikato this week: They were joined by a group of North Island Brown Kiwi on the way to Wellington - via plane.

The kiwi are part of one of New Zealand’s largest translocations.

Over the next eight weeks, 300 Kiwi would move out of Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari (SMM), located between Te Awamutu and Putāruru, to boost existing populations at Capital Kiwi in Wellington, Tongariro National Park and at a third location that is yet to be announced.

The first 15 birds travelled to Wellington on Monday, followed by 19 birds on Wednesday.

The translocation was a collaborative effort between SMM, Ngāti Korokī Kahukura and conservation trust Save the Kiwi, as part of Save the Kiwi’s Kōhanga Kiwi strategy which aimed to boost New Zealand’s Kiwi population by 2 per cent annually.

Speaking to the Waikato Herald at Wednesday’s relocation, Save the Kiwi spokesperson Erin Reilly said the translocation was great news for the conservation of the species.

About 300 Kiwi from Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari will move to new homes soon. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

“New Zealand was once home to millions of Kiwi. Over generations, numbers declined to around 70,000 [today]. This is still declining.

“However, because of this [Kōhanga Kiwi] kaupapa, [kiwi] numbers in the [North Island’s] western region are climbing. And because numbers are climbing [here], we can do this [translocation] and take the kiwi from endangered to everywhere.”

Last year, Save the Kiwi, SMM and Ngāti Korokī-Kahukura translocated 111 kiwi to new sites. This year, they were aiming for about 300.

“The jump in numbers [from 2023 to this year] means that this [Kōhanga Kiwi] kaupapa is working, more sites are getting ready [to receive kiwi].”

She said there was a large amount of work involved in getting a site ready to house a kiwi population, including a “huge” amount of predator control and ongoing predator and pest management.

“It’s been an honour to see the work that happens at scale because of people coming together to make it happen.

“Being able to see such big numbers leave from here [Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari] ... and knowing that the work that all these groups involved are doing is working - it’s incredibly encouraging.”

Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari general manager Helen Hughes echoed Reilly’s sentiment.

“It’s about the coming together of people for this shared purpose... It’s really special to be able to do this for these birds.”

Volunteers bring Kiwi in for a second health check before the bird departs to Wellington. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

Since the creation of the Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust (MEIT) and the Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari project in 2001, it was understood at that time that kiwi hadn’t been heard on the maunga for over 100 years.

“Since 2005 we have had kiwi on the maunga. The first four of which were gifted from Ngāti Hikairo ki Tongariro, one of the mana whenua of Tongariro,” Hughes said.

“Now, to be in a position to gift kiwi [ourselves] is pretty rewarding.

“There are now around 2500 kiwi here at Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, so this translocation is a bit of population control for us. Which is great, it means [kiwi] are thriving here.”

Local iwi Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, as the kaitiaki (guardians) of the kiwi population at Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, are leading the gifting process of the birds.

Ngāti Korokī Kahukura spokesperson and former co-chairperson of Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust, Poto Davies, said the day the first “founding birds” arrived at Maungatautari was a historical moment.

“In 2005, the Paramount Chief of Tuwharetoa Tumu Te Heuheu gifted four Kiwi to Queen Te Atairangikaahu. She allowed the birds to settle here.

“This sacred agreement between Rangatira [tribal chiefs] is the foundation of all translocations [to SMM].

“We always speak of whāngai [adoption] - because we are the guardians of the manu [birds], and hold the ultimate responsibility to ensure, just like a child, that they are cared for, safe, and have ample food,” Davies said.

The fact that Ngāti Korokī-Kahukura and SMM are now able to reciprocate and return descendants of the founding Kiwi to Ngāti Hikairo (Tuwharetoa) as well as the other regions, was significant, she said.

“Kiwi, because of the spaces and places they have walked, brought so much mana and mauri from Tongariro [to] here. Now we are gifting some of the birds hatched here to them... It’s a true return. It’s a reciprocation of aroha.”

What does the translocation look like?

The roughly 300 kiwi being translocated from Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari (SMM) are North Island Brown Kiwi from the western region.

They all hatched in the forest of SMM and are considered wild - so they have no names.

Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari covers an area of 3400 ha, with 47 km of predator-proof fence. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

The translocation happens across a period of several weeks, with the kiwi being moved in “batches” of around 20 birds a day.

Of the kiwi moving to new homes this year, 90 are going to Wellington, 100 will go to Tongariro and about 90 would move to a third site outside the Waikato, yet to be announced.

For the past few weeks rangers and specially-trained kiwi dogs have been out on maunga to collect the birds for their big move.

Once collected, the birds will go through a thorough health screening undertaken by a team of registered vets and kiwi handlers.

For this, a special kiwi processing centre has been set up at Pukeatua School which is just down the road from SMM.

Kiwi handlers Helen McCormick and Kelsi Thompson, of the Gallagher Kiwi Burrow in Taupo, perform a quick health check before the bird goes into a travel box for its journey to Wellington. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

After their big health check, the kiwi would be released into the southern enclosure of SMM until moving day.

On the day of their pick-up, a big group of volunteers is out and about inside the enclosure to track down burrows and retrieve as many kiwi as possible.

Once the volunteer groups capture a kiwi, they bring it to a depot at SMM’s education centre inside the forest for a second, quick health check.

One of the volunteers tracking down kiwi on Wednesday was Tane Manukonga (Ngā Mahanga a Tairi), of Taranaki.

“It was fun, our group caught four birds in total.

“[Once we found a kiwi] we handled the bird, put them in a box and the box goes to [a] depot for health checks and then we go onto the next bird.”

For him, it was a no-brainer to donate his time to the cause.

“I was really lucky to be involved. The opportunity to be up close to these taonga species of ours is life-changing.

“I’m only for a small amount of time on this planet and I know how long [the kiwi] have been here, so if I can contribute in any way that I can, I will put my best foot forward.”

After a quick health check, the Kiwi are put into wooden travel boxes. Kiwi handler Helen McCormick is shielding off the Kiwi's eyes as Kiwi are usually nocturnal birds. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

During their second health check, kiwi handlers scan the bird’s microchip, weigh the bird, check their bodies, sex, beaks, eyes, feathers and skin, and note their behaviour during the procedure.

Wednesday’s quick health check was undertaken by kiwi keepers Kelsi Thompson and Helen McCormick, of the Gallagher Kiwi Burrow in Taupō.

Thompson said she was pleased with the birds she checked.

“We had birds in pretty good condition today. They had a good weight, nice, shiny feathers and were in good health.”

After the health check, each bird gets loaded into a purpose-built, wooden travel box. The boxes with the birds then get collected at the education centre until they are ready for departure later the same day.

How are the birds being moved?

The cohort of kiwi going to Tongariro National Park and the other undisclosed location will be transported to their new homes by car.

However, the birds going to Wellington are New Zealand’s only flying kiwi - they are being transported by plane.

Pilot Charles Davis, of Wellington, loads his feathered passengers on board. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

Once enough birds have been processed in a day, they are driven to Waikato Aviation flight school, at Hamilton Airport, together, where pilots of the Wellington Aero Club pick them up.

The two pilots making Wednesday’s cohort of flightless birds fly - so to speak - were Charles Davis and Rahul Bhardwha, of Wellington.

Davis said Wellington Aero Club had sponsored the flights and when they looked for volunteers to bring the birds to their new home, he put his hand up for the job without hesitation.

“It’s quite a ... privilege when opportunities come up like this, to be able to do your little bit for the generations that will follow us and help strengthen the populations that exist in the country, especially of such an iconic native bird.

“It’s my first time flying kiwi. I’m very excited. It’s such an honour... to be able to help relocate them to their new home.”

Davis said the flying conditions on the day were beautiful.

“Very smooth conditions, very gentle headwinds... gorgeous weather... [The flight back with the kiwi on board] will probably take two hours and 20 minutes. That saves an eight to 10 hour road trip along windy roads.”

He said he understands that it took about two days to move the kiwi that were previously relocated and get them reestablished in the new grounds.

“But these birds will be on their new grounds tonight within a few hours time.”

Danielle Zollickhofer is a multimedia journalist and assistant news director at the Waikato Herald. She joined NZME in 2021 and is based in Hamilton.

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