Eketahuna's big bird moved to its new perch

The Tararua Alliance team prepare to lift the kiwi on to its new perch. Photo / Deb Lee

It's a well-travelled large, white kiwi and, unlike its forest counterparts, not afraid to venture out in the bright light.

On Monday morning Eketahuna's iconic kiwi landmark took flight, accompanied by a chorus of song and applause.

As part of the town's main street upgrade, the white kiwi was flying to its new nest across the road to sit on land owned by Chorus in an ideal spot for tourists to take photos.

"It was a wonderful occasion, with more than 100 Eketahuna school children watching from the footpath and singing as the kiwi landed in its new home," said Eketahuna-based Tararua District councillor Tracey Collis.

Mrs Collis said the people of Eketahuna were very grateful the district council had allowed them to move the kiwi as part of the upgrade.

"The cost would have been too much otherwise," she said.

The Tararua Alliance had the job of moving the kiwi, but Mrs Collis said one of the concerns had been the very fragile nature of the bird.

"It's fibreglass over a steel frame and before it was moved its old feet were cut off and new feet attached and then it was hoisted up on to a truck and moved across the road," she said.

"This is one very wide bird and it looked very odd as it was trucked to [its] new perch."

Eketahuna upgrade project liaison and community board member Sharon Shannon said the kiwi's relocation was one of the highlights of the town's main street upgrade and was something the community had been looking forward to for quite a while.

Eketahuna's iconic white kiwi passes its brown cousin, made by local artist Mark Dimock, which is attached to the wall of the Eketahuna Information Centre. Photo / Tracey Collis

While it took some time to get the bird off its perch, 20 minutes later it had landed. And with the Alliance team still fixing it in place a couple of tourists had already popped along for a photo, Mrs Collis said.

With three new businesses planning to open in Eketahuna, there was a positive flow-on from the upgrade.

"I can see some exciting things happening in this town," Mrs Collis said.

Eketahuna's big bird originally nested on top of the old PDC building in Palmerston North before it became Farmers Trading Company. It was then offered to Pukaha Mt Bruce after a representative of the Kiwi Bacon Company visited the Takah" Tearooms at Pukaha and said he was looking for a home for a kiwi.

Later the well-travelled kiwi was offered to the Eketahuna community. "It was moved with volunteer labour and even survived the Eketahuna earthquake in 2014, so it's here to stay," Mrs Collis said.