Save the Kiwi is on a mission to save New Zealand's national icon - and we need your help
Meet Save the Kiwi
Kiwi used to thrive in Aotearoa for millennia and numbered in their millions, their piercing calls filling the inky night. But in just a few hundred years, widespread clearing of forest and introduced predators have seen kiwi numbers crash. Our forests, once loud with bird call, are falling silent. Today, stoats, ferrets, dogs, and other predators pose a great danger to this unique bird.
Save the Kiwi works alongside iwi, conservation groups, communities, organisations, and the Department of Conservation Te Papa Atawhai to reverse the decline of the national kiwi population and create more kiwi-safe habitat all over Aotearoa. We work to bring increased awareness to the kiwi’s plight, how important this taonga is to our identity, and what people can do to help. We also fund kiwi conservation groups to do more of their important mahi.
Advocacy
We’re all in this together. Save the Kiwi works to raise awareness about the plight of the kiwi and what is being done to help via social media, regular newsletters, and media publicity. (Photo credit: Jenny Feaver)
Predator control
Stoats, ferrets, rats, dogs, and other predators are the greatest risk to the kiwi population. Find out more about predators, the harm they cause to our native taonga, and what we can do to help.
Kiwi avoidance training
Dogs are the biggest threat to adult kiwi. Learn about a method that can successfully teach dogs how to avoid kiwi when they come across them in the wild.
Operation Nest Egg
Operation Nest Egg is a national kiwi breeding programme which grows kiwi numbers much faster than they could in the wild. Find out more about what and who is involved. (Photo credit: Jenny Feaver)
Kōhanga Kiwi
Kōhanga Kiwi is a ground-breaking strategy that both preserves current numbers of kiwi and increases them. Learn about this world-leading conservation initiative.
Gallagher Kiwi Burrow
The Gallagher Kiwi Burrow (formerly known as the Crombie Lockwood Kiwi Burrow) is Save the Kiwi’s kiwi incubation, hatching, and brooding facility. Learn about the facility and the chicks that temporarily call this facility home.
Whānau, hapū, iwi & kiwi
Kaitiakitanga is integral to the spiritual, cultural, and social life of tangata whenua. Find out how Save the Kiwi is committed to supporting Māori leadership in kiwi and wider efforts to restore the health of the whenua.
Jobs for Nature
In 2020, Save the Kiwi was awarded Jobs for Nature funding which was redistributed to various kiwi conservation projects. Find out about these projects and the environmental gains they’re seeing. (Photo credit: Jenny Feaver)
Research
An enormous amount of research about the kiwi population has been undertaken over the years. Learn about the research behind Save the Kiwi’s vision.
Funding
Since 2002, Save the Kiwi has allocated millions of dollars in conservation funding from The Kiwi Trust. If your community group works to save the kiwi, you could be eligible for kiwi conservation funding from The Kiwi Trust, so apply for a grant today.
(Photo credit: Jenny Feaver)
Learn more about our latest mahi
How to stay on top of ferrets this summer
Ferrets are a significant threat to native bird species and reptiles. They predate on eggs, chicks...
Everyday Kiwis saving the kiwi: “Conservation is the thing I care most about.”
If you bump into Gaia O’Hare on a day off, chances are she’ll end up talking about kiwi anyway. “I...
Everyday Kiwis saving the kiwi: Helping to save the Eastern brown kiwi, one little chick at a time
Photo: Bev Wilkinson (L) and Miriam Strachan (R) conduct a health check on a kiwi at the Napier...
How you can help
Many hands make light work. Keen to join the mission to save the kiwi? Here are some ways you can help.
Protect kiwi
For kiwi to thrive, we all need to work together. Find out what you can do to help save the kiwi, wherever in Aotearoa you happen to be.
Fundraise
To continuing saving the kiwi, conservation groups need funding. Support the mission by making a donation, setting up a fundraising project, or engaging with other fundraising initiatives.
Shop for kiwi
Show your support for Save the Kiwi and some of our wonderful sponsors by purchasing products that will help us do more of what we do.
Donate
Make a quick donation, donate a day of annual leave or invest to save the kiwi.
Awhina mai ki a hoki te kiwi ki te wao tapu nui a Tāne
Help return kiwi to where they used to live
Donations over $5 are tax-deductable in Aotearoa. Thank you for supporting kiwi conservation.
Hunga tautoko
Meet our sponsorship whānau
These awesome organisations have already joined the cause to save the kiwi.
