Young Kiwis moved to island sanctuary

Three kiwi chicks have been moved off the West Coast and away from stoats.

Conservation Department West Coast conservator Mike Slater said rangers took the chicks from Okarito to a predator-free Motuara Island in the Marlborough Sounds on Friday.

They were the first to be removed from Okarito this breeding season.

Last year, 13 chicks were lost to stoats and DoC expects a stoat population explosion this summer.