"We want people to hear kiwi at night in town, and we want kiwi to be visitors to suburban backyards," says Tony Hall, Environment Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s manager of land resources.

The Trust formally kicked off in March 2006, to support the work of the already established Whakatane Kiwi Project and its plan to establish a population of 200 kiwi in Ohope Scenic Reserve by 2015.

Local Ngati Awa kaumatua saying a karakia at the Ohope Scenic Reserve in August 2006.

Back in 2001, only four pairs of kiwi lived in the Ohope Scenic Reserve, south east of Whakatane on the shores of the Bay of Plenty.   Thanks to targeted pest control funded by Environment Bay of Plenty, the Department of Conservation (DOC) has more than doubled the number of adult birds and chicks have been taken to Moutohora (Whale Island) to begin a back-up colony.

The creation of the Trust is allowing the mainland project to expand beyond Ohope Scenic Reserve and Moutohora.  It now includes private land and local communities, such as the Waiotahi pine plantation.

"We have here an unparalleled opportunity to expand and manage the population of this iconic species,” Tony says.  “We know kiwi are in rapid decline in New Zealand and it's the same in the Bay of Plenty. In much of the region, they are close to being functionally extinct.  Only about 10% of kiwi chicks survive stoats and other predators, which is why the small populations near Whakatane are so precious,” he says. 

The Whakatane Kiwi Project will help the kiwi population grow and expand into areas where kiwi are already present in small numbers, and possibly expand into areas where they once lived.  Bank of New Zealand Save the Kiwi’s Operation Nest Egg is being used to help boost the survival of eggs and chicks

Size of Area under Protection

The project encompasses a core management area of 1430 hectares.  There are plans to establish a 1-kilometre buffer zone around Ohope Scenic Reserve.

Biggest Challenge

Maintaining the genetic diversity of the kiwi is a challenge, as each population is currently isolated from the others.  Feathers from all monitored birds, and egg shell from unmonitored females are being genetically analysed at Auckland University to help make sure the gene pool is diverse enough, and identify which populations can be mixed.

Off-spring from the Waiotahi population have already been added to the Ohope/Moutohora gene pool, and birds from Whirinaki, to the south, are also being added to the genetic mix.

Biggest Successes

The success of the Whakatane Kiwi Project has been so great that both Ohope Scenic Reserve and Moutohora are on the way to reaching their carrying capacity for kiwi.  It is hoped that extended predator control and the 1-kilometre buffer zone around Ohope will mean that the wild population will be self-sustaining from 2008, allowing the Operation Nest Egg programme to be reduced.

Funding

The regional council and DOC are major supporters of the Trust, helping achieve its 10-year action plan by providing funding, staff time and monitoring expertise.  Other key partners are Ngati Awa, Bank of New Zealand Save the Kiwi Trust, private land owners, Kiwi Encounter (at Rotorua’s Rainbow Springs), the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society and the Whakatane District Council.
 
The One Most Important Thing

The one most important thing, says Michelle Howard, Kiwi Project Assistant, is to get advice from other kiwi saving groups or land restoration groups, and from specialists in this field, such as DOC and regional councils.

Contact Details

If you would like to volunteer to help the Whakatane Kiwi Project, or would like to subscribe to its newsletter, please contact Kiwi Project Manager, Tansy Bliss at:
Email: tbliss@doc.govt.nz
Phone: 07 307 0611 
Mobile: 021 115 7376
Postal address: Whakatane Field Centre, Department of Conservation, 21 Gateway West, RD4, Whakatane