New ‘Up-Close’ Kiwi Experience Celebrates 20 Years Of Kiwi At Maungatautari

Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari is launching a new, immersive Kiwi Experience Tour which will allow the public to get up close to kiwi at the sanctuary for the first time as part of the country's largest kiwi translocation project, which Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari undertakes in partnership with mana whenua and Save the Kiwi.

This year also marks the 20th anniversary of the re-introduction of kiwi on Maungatautari since four kiwi chicks were gifted from Ngāti Hikairo ki Tongariro to Ngāti Koroki Kahukura to begin a founding population within the sanctuary in 2005.

As part of the recognition of this significant milestone, visitors will be able to see this world-leading programme in action, with the rare opportunity to see some of these iconic birds up close as they have their health checks.

Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari Chief Executive Helen Hughes says the translocation process involves carefully finding kiwi from the 3,400-hectare sanctuary and relocating them to suitable habitats elsewhere, where they can thrive and contribute to the species' recovery.

"We are incredibly proud of the success of the kiwi translocation programme," says Helen. "Each kiwi we help relocate represents a step forward in our mission to restore and protect New Zealand's unique biodiversity."

“The programme and critical work our team is doing is being recognised globally as world-leading and we are thrilled to be able to help elevate New Zealand on the international conservation stage in this way,” she says.

Representatives of Ngāti Koroki Kahukura, Ted Tauroa and Poto Davies say Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari and Ngāti Koroki Kahukura will never forget the act of tono (gifting and asking).

“Due to the first gifting of kiwi by Ngāti Hikairo of Tūwharetoa in 2005, Maungatautari kiwi have flourished. Ngāti Koroki Kahukura and Ngāti Tuwharetoa elders developed this process, including Paramount Chief, Tumu te Heuheu. Other source sites gifted kiwi in 2005, the Waimarino tribes and Rotokare of Taranaki. Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari and Ngāti Koroki Kahukura will continue to acknowledge our iwi and community who gifted 400 kiwi founders to the maunga,” they say.

The sanctuary now serves as a valuable source population for the North Island Brown Kiwi from the western region, with the population of kiwi thriving in the sanctuary estimated at close to 3,000.

To date, 346 kiwi have been translocated from Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari to other locations within the North Island as part of the national re-population strategy.

In 2019, 13 birds were moved to Waimarino, then in 2023, 111 birds were moved to Tongariro (DOC), and Capital Kiwi in Wellington and in 2024, 222 kiwi were moved to Tongariro (88), Capital Kiwi in Wellington (65), and Taranaki Mounga (69).

Michelle Impey, CEO for Save the Kiwi, is delighted with this new development.

“Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari is one of the cornerstones of Save the Kiwi’s Kōhanga Kiwi programme. Over the past two years our team, working in partnership with the amazing staff and volunteers at Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, have delivered 333 kiwi to new homes in Mākara (Wellington), Tongariro, and Taranaki Mounga. It has been heart-warming to see the impact the arrival of these kiwi have on local communities, and it is exciting that members of the public will now have the chance to experience this in the beautiful setting of Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari,” she says.

On the interactive 1.5-hour Kiwi Experience tour, participants will learn about Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, the ngahere, and kiwi conservation efforts, witness a kiwi health check, and get the rare opportunity to see a kiwi up-close and take photos.

Tours will be available from March until mid-April and all proceeds from the Kiwi Experience Tour will go directly towards Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari’s kiwi programme and supporting ongoing conservation efforts.

Helen says the tour offers visitors an opportunity to journey into the heart of kiwi conservation while helping Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari invest in the future of New Zealand's unique biodiversity.

"We believe that education and engagement are key to successful conservation and our Kiwi Experience Tours will highlight the importance of the tono process and provide our manuhiri (visitors) with a taste of what it takes to protect and help our kiwi taonga recover and thrive as a species,” she says.

“The new tours are designed to inspire and inform our visitors, fostering a deeper connection to these incredible birds and the importance of protecting them and their habitat for future generations."

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