Geyser the kiwi dies in suspected dog attack, Ngāti Rangi ‘devastated’

Originally published by Whakaata Māori

Ngāti Rangi is devastated by the death of a monitored kiwi as the result of a likely dog attack.

The central North Island iwi and the Department of Conservation want hunters and dog owners to comply with dog permits which include the requirement that the animals are certified as kiwi-avoidance trained.

This follows the death of a kiwi in Rangataua Forest near Ohakune last week.

Rangers were tracking three tagged male North Island brown kiwi when they discovered one, named Geyser, dead.

Geyser was released into Rangataua in 2015.

The rangers found the other two monitored kiwi safe and almost ready to fledge their chicks.

Ngāti Rangi's Fred Clarke and Department of Conservation biodiversity ranger Jenny Hayward released Geyser the kiwi into Rangataua Forest in 2015.

The cause of Geyser’s death has been determined as most likely to have been a dog attack, Ngāti Rangi and DoC said in joint release.

“Ngāti Rangi sees kiwi as a taonga species – the iwi has strong cultural, spiritual and historic associations with kiwi,” said Helen Leahy, Pou Ārahi of Ngā Waihua o Paerangi (formerly Ngāti Rangi Trust).

Even just one kiwi death can have a devastating impact on kiwi recovery, she said.

“Brown kiwi can live for around 40 years, and the early death of a breeding adult male means the loss of generations of taonga.”

Visitors to Rangataua Forest can bring up to two dogs with a permit from DoC and both dogs must be certified as kiwi-avoidance trained to be able to enter.

“Kiwi-avoidance training is easy to do and there are many options to book across the country,” DoC supervisor Danial Van der Lubbe said.

“Not only is it a requirement for Rangataua, but it’s also a vitally important tool for all New Zealanders to help reduce the threat hunting and farming dogs pose to kiwi in the wild.”

The Rangataua Forest ecological area is managed in partnership with Ngāti Rangi and is home to a large population of short-tailed bats and other native species such as kākā and kārearea.

Leahy said protection of all fragile native species is a collective priority.

“We’re looking to introduce more kiwi into the area in the future, so it’s imperative that we protect these taonga.”

The release said members of the public should report roaming dogs on conservation land, including if their own dogs become lost, to the 24-hour DoC emergency hotline 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468).

The Dog Control Act 1996 enables the destruction of a dog found to have injured or killed any protected wildlife, including kiwi, and the owner to be fined $20,000, and/or three years in jail.

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