Kiwi The Stars Of Zoo’s Waitangi Day Celebrations

New Zealand’s national bird will share the limelight with visitors at Auckland Zoo’s Kiwi and Kids event on Tuesday, 6 February (10am to 2pm) to celebrate Waitangi Day.

The zoo is inviting visitors to mark New Zealand’s national day by learning about how they can personally make a difference towards helping save the kiwi, along with celebrating its uniqueness, and taking part in some fun activities. The iconic flightless kiwi, which the vast majority of "Kiwi" homo sapiens have never seen in the wild or captivity, once roamed New Zealand in millions, but is today an endangered species. Just five per cent of chicks hatched in the wild survive to adulthood - mainly due to introduced predators such as stoats and dogs.

A special raffle to raise funds for the Bank of New Zealand's Save the Kiwi's Operation Nest Egg programme will see one lucky family win the exclusive opportunity to go behind the scenes to see kiwi chicks being reared at the zoo's New Zealand Fauna Conservation Centre. Second prize will see a family win tickets to the Anika Moa Wild Bean Café ZooMusic concert on 24 February (also helping to raise awareness and funds for the kiwi) and Bank of New Zealand "Kiwi chicks rock" t-shirts.

Kiwis big and small can check out the resident kiwi at the Bank of New Zealand Kiwi and Tuatara House, and get along to the Native Fauna Encounter (2pm) to see a range of native species, including the illusive ratite. A kea encounter will also take place at 1pm (just beside the Kiwi and Tuatara House). In addition, throughout the day there will be great give-aways, face painting, and the chance to meet the Bank of New Zealand’s special kiwi character, “Sniff”.

A highlight of Kiwi and Kids Day will be the launch (at 11.30am) of the new children’s book - Operation Nest Egg: Saving New Zealand’s Kiwi - all about the Bank of New Zealand Save the Kiwi's Operation Nest Egg, a programme that nurtures, supports and protects kiwi. Author of the book, Maria Gill, will be on hand to sign copies. Throughout the day there will be kiwi-themed games, book and t-shirt spot prizes to be won, and great Kiwi music. Conservation groups will also have interactive displays at the zoo - to share with visitors, ways that they can help the kiwi.

Auckland Zoo is a partner in Operation Nest Egg, which works to remove kiwi eggs, and chicks, from the dangerous predators that threaten them in the wild. In special captive facilities (such as Auckland Zoo's) eggs are incubated, and hatched chicks reared before being transferred to "creche" islands free from predators until they are old enough to defend themselves. Kiwi in the programme are released back into the wild when they reach one kilogram in weight – the size when they can effectively fend off attacks from predators.

This year marks the 10-year anniversary of Auckland Zoo’s involvement with Operation Nest Egg. To date, the zoo has hatched, reared and released 149 kiwi back into the wild, with more releases planned over the coming months. “Since Operation Nest Egg started in 1994 there have been around 700 kiwi released back into the wild nationwide. It has proved to be a very effective way of boosting a local kiwi population or re-establishing a population where kiwi have disappeared, says the Zoo's New Zealand Fauna team leader, Andrew Nelson. " The zoo works closely with fellow Operation Nest Egg partner, the Department of Conservation, to improve the hatching successes of eggs throughout the different stages of incubation."

Kiwi and Kids Day at Auckland Zoo, Tuesday 6 February, 10am to 2pm. Normal zoo admission prices apply. For more information visit www.aucklandzoo.co.nz or phone (09) 360 3805.

ENDS

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