Christmas present at Shakespear as kiwi eggs spotted

Wednesday, 22 November 2017

Some of the 20 little spotted kiwi at Shakespear Open Sanctuary have started to breed.

They've only been at Shakespear Open Sanctuary since April but, with at least one spotted kiwi male already caring for an egg, the birds look to be settling in well.

Parks staff are monitoring the birds closely, chairman of Shakespear volunteer group SOSSI Peter Jackson said.

Little spotted kiwi have reached capacity on off shore islands.

Weighing around one kilogram, females lay the biggest egg in relation to their size of any bird in the world. Incubation of the egg is then taken over by the male.

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Ten birds each from Tiritiri Matangi Is and Kapiti Is were released behind the 1.7 kilometre-long predator fence at the end of the Whangaparaoa Peninsula.

Unlike North Island brown kiwi, smaller little spotted kiwi often don't reach a size where they are able to fight off predators like stoats or cats.

With island sanctuaries now at capacity, mainland sanctuaries like Shakespear are becoming more important.

The translocation didn't go completely with out a hitch as one of the birds, an older female named Matariki, was found dead a few months later at the bottom of the cliffs on the eastern coast of Army Bay.

With no sign of being attacked, it seemed she took a tumble while exploring, Auckland Council Senior Ranger Open Sanctuaries Matt Maitland said at the time.

She was thought to be at least 23-years-old. Little Spotted kiwi live to about 30-years-old.

Another 20 birds are planned to be released next year with the park eventually able to support about 100 birds.

There are just 1,400 birds left.