North Island Brown Kiwi
The North Island brown kiwi is a species of kiwi that is widespread in the northern two-thirds of the North Island of New Zealand, and, with about 35,000 remaining, it is the most common kiwi species. The eggs laid by the North Island Brown Kiwi are among the largest eggs relative to its body size.Kiwi birds were introduced to Kawau Island by Sir George Grey in the 1860s and 1870s as part of his efforts to create a diverse and interesting landscape on the island. Specifically, he introduced North Island kiwi (Apteryx mantelli).
Listen to the call of a male Brown kiwi CLICK the button below.
Listen to the call of a female Brown kiwi CLICK the button below.
North Island weka (Gallirallus australis greyi)
A unique avifaunal feature of Kawau Island is that it presently has the largest population of endangered North Island weka (Gallirallus australis greyi) in New Zealand. The present Kawau Island population of North Island Weka originated from a release of 31 birds on Kawau at approximate location S36 24.428 E174 50.209 during March 1976. Since the 1976 release the weka population has been continuously observed within the Kawau community. The birds were released by the New Zealand Wildlife Service and originated from the Gisborne district. They readily became established in the presence of possums, wallabies. Weka were observed to have become widespread on the island by 1985 and the mean equilibrium weka population under present habitat conditions (May 1996) is estimated by observation and calculation to be approximately 3,500. Weka are not evenly distributed over the Island and are in greater numbers closer to dwellings and human activity and in valleys and some intertidal areas. The image to the left shows two adult and three juvenile weka feeding near a landowners dwelling.
Listen to the call of a North Island Weka CLICK the button below.
Kākā
Kākā is a medium-sized New Zealand parrot, measuring 40 to 45 cm in length and weighing on average 450g. Unlike the Kea its close relation it is predominantly a tree dweller. It was once widespread throughout most of New Zealand. With its habitat being severely modified and predation from introduced animals it was absent from Kawau Island for many decades. Its coloration is spectacular, especially when seen in mid-flight with a display of brown/green/grey plumage with flashes of orange, scarlet, red to yellow under its wings and breast. With the reducing pest numbers and recovering forest canopy small numbers of Kākā began to be seen in the sky’s above Kawau once again in the early 2020’s. It is likely that these birds originated from Little Barrier Island approximately 30km away which due to its status as a wildlife sanctuary was a strong hold for the birds. Kākā are now re-established in good numbers on the island. Often vocal in mid flight.