An adult female Northland brown kiwi that was caught in a leghold trap near Waipapa four weeks ago has been released back into its home territory by the land owner and Department of Conservation rangers after recuperating at the Native Bird Recovery Centre in Whangarei.
"This bird was lucky," Bay of Islands senior ranger Adrian Walker said.
"Most kiwi caught in traps have to be euthanased. We've had at least two other kiwi caught in leghold traps in the Mid North in the recent past, and that's two kiwi too many."
High prices for possum fur and access to cheap leghold traps had led to an increase in possum trappers, he added. Falling possum numbers was great news in terms of protecting native forests, but commonly-used leghold traps set on the ground in kiwi areas posed a significant risk to the birds.
"Thoughtless trapping such as this can undo many years of hard work done by many dedicated locals to protect kiwi," Mr Walker said.
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