Kiwi bird makes itself at home in Northland chicken coop

A North Island brown kiwi has been spotted taking a nap in a hen house in Northland’s Bay of Islands. 

The Department of Conservation (DoC) was notified of the surprise chicken coop break-in by the iconic bird in Waipapa recently. 

Homeowner Jane Jackets spotted the intruder taking a nap next to one of her hens when she went to check on her chickens. 

“This little visitor decided to take a nap in one of our nesting boxes. The girls [the chickens] were surprisingly chill about it — seems like they’re open to new company,” she said. 

The kiwi was not only pleased with its new sleeping spot, it even took a stroll around Jackets’ 4.8ha property before returning for another nap in the hen house. 

Jane called 0800 DOC HOT to report the kiwi and was given advice by rangers to make sure it had access back to the bush, but to otherwise leave it in peace and enjoy the special experience. 

It returned to the bush after a few days. 

The kiwi went wild on social media after DoC posted photos and a description on Tuesday. 

While DoC has not heard of a kiwi nesting in a chicken coop before, ranger Lara McDonald expected such sightings to become more common. 

“We are fortunate in Northland to have large groups of community doing intensive predator control, which has revived the kiwi population numbers,” she said. 

“With kiwi living closer to us and in bigger numbers, this means we sometimes get to have unique experiences like this. It also means we need to remember to keep all dogs and cats under control, especially in kiwi areas, as they are one of the biggest risks to our kiwi population.” 

Cats and dogs should be kept under control by keeping them inside, leashed or in a kennel, while dogs should also be signed up for kiwi avoidance training. 

As summer progresses, people lucky enough to live in kiwi areas are also encouraged to put out shallow dishes of water for the birds to to drink. 

DoC biodiversity ranger Cinzia Vestena said the last time there was a long dry spell, some kiwi drowned in swimming pools and troughs after having a drink. 

This can be avoided by adding a plank or brinks to low pools and troughs so the kiwi can get out, she said. 

While DoC has not heard of a kiwi nesting in a chicken coop before, ranger Lara McDonald expected such sightings to become more common. 

“We are fortunate in Northland to have large groups of community doing intensive predator control, which has revived the kiwi population numbers,” she said. 

“With kiwi living closer to us and in bigger numbers, this means we sometimes get to have unique experiences like this. It also means we need to remember to keep all dogs and cats under control, especially in kiwi areas, as they are one of the biggest risks to our kiwi population.” 

Cats and dogs should be kept under control by keeping them inside, leashed or in a kennel, while dogs should also be signed up for kiwi avoidance training. 

As summer progresses, people lucky enough to live in kiwi areas are also encouraged to put out shallow dishes of water for the birds to to drink. 

DoC biodiversity ranger Cinzia Vestena said the last time there was a long dry spell, some kiwi drowned in swimming pools and troughs after having a drink. 

This can be avoided by adding a plank or brinks to low pools and troughs so the kiwi can get out, she said. 

This article was first published by the NZ Herald and is republished here with permission.