Lambert the kiwi is thriving in his new home at the Whangarei Heads. Remote monitoring of Lambert via his radio transmitter had already confirmed that he was alive and well after his release in July 2008.
Todd Hamilton recently caught up with Lambert to give him his 6 monthly physical check-up and discovered he is in good condition. Todd with the help of Daniel MacDonald found Lambert resting in long kikuyu under a stand of replanted pines. They carried out a series of ‘biometric’ checks; measurement of weight, bill length and general condition scoring. Lambert will continue to be monitored remotely and in six months time when he is nearly 3 years old and due to start breeding he will be fitted with a new “chick timer”. This new technology provides much more information and enables researchers to identify when the bird is nesting (kiwi dads sit on the nest) or even when a chick has hatched. This means a reduction in invasive handling and less interruption for Lambert.
Lambert was originally released at the Whangarei Heads as part of a large programme designed to increase the population of kiwi in the area. A number of adult kiwi were already present but their numbers were low. The introduction of new individuals would help the longer term stability of the population. Simply adding more birds was not a viable, long term solution, firstly the reason for their decline had to be identified and a plan of action put into place. A number of landcare groups, supported by NZ Landcare Trust, operate in the area and they have come together as the ‘Whangarei Heads Landcare Forum’ for the kiwi recovery project. The group have identified predation as a major problem and established a trapping programme. Local dog owners have also been made aware that dogs pose a large threat to kiwi and they need to be managed accordingly.
This project is funded by a number of sponsors, including BNZ Save the Kiwi, Transpower Landcare Trust grant, NRC, ASB Community Trust, Biodiversity Condition Fund and WWF. This funding enables ‘Whangarei Heads Landcare Forum’ to employ Todd Hamilton for two days a week to supplement the predator control efforts of the local landowners and to protect the chicks hatched by birds in the area. Todd has also been granted a permit to carry out some chick translocation to supplement the population.
