A 30-year-old kiwi has said goodbye to his home in Rotorua and has been released into the wild for the first time.
Tahi, a North Island brown kiwi, was the first chick to hatch at Rainbow Springs as part of the captive management programme at Kiwi Encounter.
Assistant kiwi husbandry manager Helen McCormick said although Tahi had been at Rainbow Springs since hatching in 1987, kiwi were very instinctive and able to transition from captivity to the wild.
Tahi was released today into Otanewainuku Forest by a group that included Ms McCormick, and representatives from Otanewainuku Kiwi Trust and Kiwi Transportable Homes, which has sponsored kiwi for many years.
Like all the kiwi in Otanewainuku Forest, Tahi will be monitored post-release, she said.