Kiwi are New Zealand's most iconic wildlife symbol but face extinction from introduced mammalian predators, with intensive conservation interventions now required to maintain wild populations.
Kiwi chicks killed by stoats and rats experience the acute fear and pain of predation by animals they have no evolutionary preparation to escape. Adult kiwi in areas without predator control live under constant predation pressure that elevates chronic stress. The welfare of surviving kiwi in areas with active predator control is dramatically better — lower mortality risk, successful chick rearing, and population growth. The contrast between kiwi welfare with and without predator management is stark and makes predator control programs one of the clearest welfare interventions available for New Zealand wildlife.