Kerikeri man 'disgusted' over deceptive use of dead kiwi photo on 1080 page

The Facebook post claiming that kiwi killed by dogs and cars had been died as a result of 1080 poisoning has since been removed. Photo / Facebook

A Kerikeri man is ''annoyed and disgusted'' that anti-1080 campaigners are using his photo of kiwi killed by dogs and cars to mislead the public.

In 2011 Rolf Mueller-Glodde saw Department of Conservation staff placing more than 50 dead kiwi on the lawn of their Kerikeri headquarters while they were making a video about threats to the national bird.

The kiwi had been collected by DOC rangers and the public over three years around the Bay of Islands and stored in a freezer. About half had been killed by dogs and the rest by cars.

Mr Mueller-Glodde asked if he could take a photo of the ''extremely sad flock of kiwis''; he then allowed the Northern Advocate to use his photo with a July 2011 story about the short lifespan of Northland kiwi.

He also allowed conservation group Bay Bush Action to use the image in a Facebook post.

Last week, however, the photo was posted on the 1080 Eyewitness Facebook page with the text ''So guttering [sic] when you see pictures like this of 1080 poisoned kiwis''.

The Facebook post claiming that kiwi killed by dogs and cars had been died as a result of 1080 poisoning has since been removed. Photo / Facebook

The post was shared more than 1500 times and viewed by many thousands of people.

It was then shared on the 1080 Eyewitness Open page where the real story behind the photo was exposed. The original post was subsequently deleted.

Mr Mueller-Glodde said it wasn't the first time someone had used his photo, without permission, in a deliberate attempt to deceive.

''I'm annoyed and disgusted that they use it in a way that totally wrongly reflects the cause of death of the kiwis ... These kiwis were collected by DOC from road and dog kill, not in the forest as a result of 1080.''

Mr Mueller-Glodde, an organic grower, said he didn't like the pesticide 1080 but believed it was ''a necessary evil'' with no effective alternative.

Bay Bush Action trustee Brad Windust said he was ''extremely annoyed'' that a photo given to the group was being misused.

''It's worse than lying. They're trying to mislead the public.''

An explanation on the 1080 Eyewitness Open page states the group has been set up for people to post eyewitness accounts of 1080 poison in New Zealand and encourages debate from both sides. The page is often used to critique claims made in groups such as 1080 Eyewitness.