New Zealand's kiwi face extinction pressure from introduced predators, and recovery programs involve trapping, translocation, and captive rearing with associated welfare implications.
Recovery interventions involve welfare costs including capture stress, captive rearing in unfamiliar environments, and the disorientation of translocation. These costs are justified by the far greater harm of population extinction, but minimizing intervention stress remains important. Captive facilities for kiwi now use dark, temperature-controlled enclosures with substrate for probing that match natural conditions closely. Welfare monitoring of released birds using radio tracking allows rapid response if individuals struggle to establish home ranges.