The kiwi is New Zealand's national icon and part of our image world-wide. New Zealanders have been "Kiwis" since the days of the First World War. It's a nickname bestowed by fellow Australian soldiers, and it stuck. Today our identity as Kiwis is based around our national bird.
Kiwi are a natural fit with New Zealanders’ national psyche – we relate to their quirkiness, evolved over millions of years of isolation from mammals.
Today the birds are under siege. By 1998, the population had plummeted to fewer than 100,000 birds. By 2008 that figure had fallen even further – to about 70,000.
Over the past 15-20 years, where kiwi are being managed – in Department of Conservation kiwi sanctuaries, in community-led projects (many of them sponsored by BNZ Save the Kiwi) and on offshore island sanctuaries – the news is heartening and populations are stable or increasing.
But outside these managed areas, kiwi populations are predicted to continue to decline because management is only happening in small pockets of where they live
There are now 5 identified species of Kiwi; North Island Brown Kiwi, Little Spotted Kiwi, Great Spotted Kiwi , Rowi & Tokoeka. The more we know about the Kiwi the more we can increase their chances of survival
