Wild Kiwi Welfare and Predator-Free New Zealand

New Zealand kiwi face extinction from introduced mammalian predators, and the national Predator Free 2050 program aims to eliminate stoats, rats, and possums across the country.

Key Facts

Kiwi populations have declined from an estimated 12 million to fewer than 70,000 since human settlement of New Zealand
Stoats kill an estimated 95% of kiwi chicks that do not receive predator protection intervention
Operation Nest Egg — removing eggs for incubation and releasing juveniles — has been critical to population maintenance
Predator Free 2050 aims to eradicate stoats, rats, and possums from all of New Zealand by mid-century
Kiwi are nocturnal and use their long bill to probe soil for invertebrates — they have the most developed sense of smell of any bird

Welfare Considerations

Kiwi welfare is almost entirely determined by predator pressure. A kiwi chick without protection faces near-certain death from stoat predation within weeks of hatching — one of the highest mortality rates of any bird species anywhere. Adults face ongoing stoat and dog predation. The Predator Free 2050 program represents the most ambitious terrestrial predator eradication project globally, using gene drive technology, toxins, and mechanical trapping at landscape scale. If successful, it would transform kiwi welfare outcomes from near-certain juvenile death to something approaching natural survival rates.

What You Can Do

Donate to Kiwis for kiwi and Predator Free New Zealand programs
Keep dogs leashed in kiwi habitat areas in New Zealand
Support gene drive research for humane invasive predator control
Participate in local predator trapping networks if you live in New Zealand