The 2026 kiwi translocation season got underway this month. Photo / Lucy Schultz
The kiwi translocation season at Waikato’s Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari got underway this month.
So far, 12 kiwi have made their way from the eco-sanctuary between Te Awamutu and Putāruru to a new home at Karioi Rāhui in Ruapehu.
While Karioi Rāhui previously welcomed birds from other areas, it’s the first time Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari has translocated birds to this site.
Karioi Rāhui is a 5300ha ecological project, managed by Ngāti Rangi and the Department of Conservation (DoC).
The Waikato cohort will contribute genetic diversity to the existing Karioi Rāhui population, supporting its long-term resilience across the central North Island.
As kaitiaki of Maungatautari, mana whenua have been instrumental in the gifting of kiwi from the sanctuary.
Ngāti Koroki Kahukura completed the tono process required before the birds could be moved into the care of Ngāti Rangi.
In addition to the translocations to Karioi Rāhui, there will be four weeks of translocations to Capital Kiwi in Wellington, Taranaki Mounga Project and Tongariro National Park in April.
For Capital Kiwi, it will be the last year, as they only have around 40 more birds to receive based on their current permit.
Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari visitor experience and sales manager, Tali Jellyman, said new sites may be looked at in the future, “as determined by the national kiwi recovery programme in partnership with mana whenua and Save the Kiwi”.
In 2023, 111 kiwi were translocated to new homes, followed by 222 in 2024 and 273 birds last year.
It’s the largest kiwi translocation in New Zealand.
Jellyman said there was no target number for the weather-dependent translocations this year.
The sanctuary runs kiwi experience tours again, where visitors can witness a health check.
Spots are limited for the safety of the birds. Tickets are available online at sanctuarymountain.co.nz.
Kiwi were not the only species on the move this month.
Two juvenile female takahē, Manawanui and Manawaiti, hatched and raised at the sanctuary, were also translocated as part of a different project, DoC’s Takahē Recovery Programme.
Manawanui travelled to the Burwood Takahē Centre to join a breeding and prerelease training programme that prepares takahē for life in the wild.
Manawaiti was translocated to Willowbank Wildlife Reserve, which plays a vital role as a breeding site.
Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari is home to two breeding pairs of takahē.
To date, 27 juveniles, including Manawanui and Manawaiti, have been hatched, raised, and transferred from the sanctuary to other protected sites.
Other species are also thriving at the sanctuary.
The three resident kākāpō, Bunker, Taeatanga and Tautahi, recently underwent routine health checks and transmitter changes.
They were found to be in “excellent” condition, DoC said.
No supplementary feeding was provided this summer, a decision made by the Kākāpō Recovery Team, allowing them to observe “natural foraging behaviour” over the summer season, a DoC spokesperson said in a statement.
Despite the absence of supplementary feeding, both Bunker and Taeatanga had gained weight, with Tautahi maintaining a healthy weight.
Data from newly fitted GPS transmitters show all birds remained within the sanctuary’s fenceline.
The work underway in Waikato supports that of the wider species recovery efforts.
A lot of eyes are currently on the South Island due to the kākāpō breeding season.
There are 235 kākāpō alive today, most on offshore islands on the coast of the South Island.
While several chicks have already hatched, they are only officially added to the population when they reach independence, after around 150 days.
Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari is also home to a North Island kōkako population.
Last year, the sanctuary welcomed 17 new birds from Te Ngāherehere o Kohukohunui (Hunua ranges).
Usually, when kōkako are released at a site, they head up to the high points.
This time, three pairs of the new cohort have been sighted by visitors and staff staying within the southern enclosure area of Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari.
A visitor, Camilla Caton, also captured images of a fledgling within the southern enclosure.
“Whilst the population has been increasing and chicks have most certainly been hatching and becoming part of the population on the maunga, this is the first photograph we have of one in the forest on Maungatautari,” Jellyman said.