Kiwi Encounter husbandry manager Emma Bean, of Rainbow Springs, shows Tihei, a 3-day-old kiwi chick, to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Photo / NZME
Kiwi Encounter husbandry manager Emma Bean, of Rainbow Springs, shows Tihei, a 3-day-old kiwi chick, to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Photo / NZME
The genders of two kiwis named by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been revealed to be girls and one is being released into the wild today.
The two chicks at the Rainbow Springs Kiwi Hatchery were named Tihei and Koha when they were 3 days old by PrinceHarry and Meghan Markle during their Rotorua visit last October.
The gender neutral names were requested for the chicks as their gender was unknown at the time and Kiwi husbandry manager Emma Bean said there was no way to confirm a gender without DNA testing.
"We take a feather sample and, similar to crime scene investigations, it needs that little bit of fresh tissue at the tip, so we tend to wait until they're a little bit older until we take those feathers."
The team then sends the feathers down to Massey University for DNA testing to confirm the gender.
Kiwi Encounter husbandry manager Emma Bean, of Rainbow Springs, shows Tihei, a 3-day-old kiwi chick, to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Photo / NZME
Bean said before DNA testing techniques were available they would measure the bill length of a kiwi as females tended to be larger.
"If a bird in the wild was caught and its bill was over 100mm they would know it was a female, but, of course, if it was shorter than that, they wouldn't know if it was a juvenile female or a male."
Tihei, the last chick of the two remaining at the hatchery, has now reached the required weight to be released back into the wild.
Tihei is not shy of the spotlight for a nocturnal bird. Photo / Stephen Parker
Her health check yesterday revealed she was 1.098kg, just over the 1kg weight needed to be released.
Bean said she wanted to make sure Tihei was fit and healthy before she went out into the east Taranaki bush. She was almost held back by intestinal parasites but that was quickly resolved with medicine.
"We just want to make sure her eyes are bright and in good condition and that her legs are fit and strong to defend herself if she needs to."
