Manukura and friends update

Well, it hasn't exactly been a romance worthy of Shortland Street, but Manukura and her new little pal are doing really well in their enclosure. When they both met for the first time, Manukura attempted to come a little closer to inspect her new roommate, but unfortunately startled him, and made him jump! Since then, they've tended to keep to themselves a bit, but the DOC rangers are confident that as time goes by, they will become more comfortable with each other. They are both still very young, so their behaviour is all very age appropriate at the moment!

An upside of bunking in with a friend is that both kiwi can roam between the two enclosures. If you visit Manukura and can't see her straight away, she may just be in the tunnel in between the enclosures. She is normally out and about though, never too far away. She occasionally catches a nap in her friend's burrow - cheeky!

Mauriora, Manukura's little brother, is also doing well, along with the 20 kiwi chicks that successfully hatched this year as part of Operation Nest Egg (O.N.E.) programme. The next season is not far off - we could begin to identify new eggs from the next season as early as August!

One kiwi chick from the current season is still being hand fed in the nursery. The DOC ranger feeds him each day at 12pm in the Kiwi House providing a delightful sight to those visiting Pukaha at the moment*. The rangers will continue to handfeed the chick until he (or she) begins to eat on his own - which is likely to be any day now. This last little chick seems more than happy to be handfed and not so keen on going to the effort of foraging for his own food which the other chicks are happily doing now. The DOC rangers think this is probably due to his very happy and relaxed nature, and they're confident he will soon find his way to the bowls of food put out for the chicks each night.

In other kiwi news, Potiki (pictured here with Manukura) who was released in November 2011, has been tracked out in the Pukaha forest, safe and well.

Remember you can come see Manukura and her new friend 364 days of the year at Pukaha Mount Bruce on State Highway 2 in between Masterton and Eketahuna. Don't forget to follow her on Facebook!

*Note that feeding chicks in the Kiwi House only takes place when a kiwi chick needs feeding - so unfortunately we can't guarantee this will take place every day. In the case of this last little chick, by the time you receive the newsletter, chances are he will be happily feeding on his own and not needing to be handfed - meaning there won't be a public viewing until next season's chicks arrive.

ENDS

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