Kiwi are iconic flightless birds whose welfare and survival in New Zealand depend entirely on predator control programs eliminating introduced mammals that evolved alongside them.
Individual kiwi killed by stoats experience rapid predatory death whose welfare significance is mitigated by its speed, but the loss of breeding adults and chicks to predation before they can reproduce represents systemic welfare failure for the species. Kiwi living in predator-controlled areas experience dramatically better welfare outcomes — finding adequate food, successfully raising chicks, and living their full natural lifespans. Supporting the Predator Free 2050 program is one of the most direct wildlife welfare actions available to people who care about kiwi.