A boom in the number of little spotted kiwi appears to be a conservation success story, but new research by a Victoria University of Wellington graduand shows that, in some populations, the rapid growth could be masking the potentially devastating impact of inbreeding.
Just over 100 years ago, the little spotted kiwi population experienced a bottleneck of just five birds. They were translocated to Kapiti Island where their descendants now number nearly 1,200. Subsequently, Kapiti Island birds were transferred to seven different predator-free locations, mostly offshore islands.
Helen Taylor, who graduates with a PhD in Ecology and Biodiversity in December, has studied the genetics of the two little spotted kiwi populations outside of Kapiti Island, that were founded with the least and most birds. One is on Long Island in the Marlborough Sounds (two founders; today around 50 birds) and the other in Wellington's Zealandia eco-sanctuary (40 founders; today around 120 birds).
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