Kiwi Bird Transfer gets Royal (Air Force) Treatment
A select group of native kiwi will got the royal treatment when they flew with the air force as part of New Zealand’s largest-ever wildlife transfer. 30 North Island brown kiwi needed to be swiftly moved 650km from their Hauraki Gulf island home to the lower North Island to the Mt Bruce Wildlife Sanctuary in the Wairarapa (see map). The Department of Conservation (DOC) called on the Royal New Zealand Airforce (RNZAF) for logistical assistance. The iconic birds joined No 40 Squadron on a C130 Hercules that flew from RNZAF Base Auckland on Friday (7.05.2010) arrived at Masterton Airport to an official welcome.
All 30 kiwi re-located in New Zealand’s largest-ever wildlife transfer operation are doing well and appear to be happy in their new home at the Pukaha Mount Bruce National Wildlife Centre in Wairarapa.
The North Island brown kiwi spent about 24 hours in transit from the time they were captured on Hauturu / Little Barrier Island, in the Hauraki Gulf, to their release on Friday (7.05.2010) at Pukaha Mt Bruce.
Transmitter readings show that four days on, the kiwi are all moving around, at least one of the pairs have stayed together and there are signs that normal bodily functions have been resumed.
Department of Conservation
The new arrivals more than doubles the number of kiwi roaming the 940-hectare forest at Mt Bruce, and is a major step on the road to having 500 kiwi living in the National Wildlife Centre’s protected forest.
You can find the Mt Bruce Wildlife Reserve here.
You can find Save the Kiwi Organization here.
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It’s good to know that the government is taking action about this matter. Unique birds like these should be protected from extinction.
Too true
It is diffucult to imagine that such a small bird can exist:))) How cute and beautiful!
They have been around for a long time.
Wow!!! I am a animal lover and for that I saluted the Air Force for treating animals as a friend. Thank for the article, I really liked it. Jobs Oberpfalz
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I like to watch animal planet in my free time because animals are so immediate and cute! thanks for this article about the life of this beautiful bird!
Cheers
Very nice post, now only i know this type o birds are alive,
We don’t have those cute kiwi’s in north Africa. But i’m glad that governments are actually starting to care about birdies. There were times in the past were thousands of garden’s birds get shot with small hunting rifles by the bad guys (wild hunters) and i literally used to chase those guys away. Lol it was no fun but now the state made it strictly forbidden to harm any wild bird. Plus, people are more likely scared to approach/harm wild birds these days because of the flue thingy. God bless nature.
Regards.
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Really interesting article and website, so great that the kiwis are being looked after – we really need to look after everything that we have left!
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Informative as well as interesting article. This national bird of New Zealand, Kiwi, is indeed getting a royal treatment. The government of every nation must learn something and take some steps for securing wildlife.
Protecting the wildlife is one of the most important duties of government of all nations. If they are not protected then they may get extinct. I appreciate New Zealand government for this move.