There is something innately Kiwi about being small, but holding your own against seemingly overwhelming odds.
The determination, resilience and indomitable spirit that defines us as a nation is echoed in our native fauna and flora. We have a beach-going seabird that is so rare it makes the kakapo seem positively common and a species of penguin that numbers just 600 breeding pairs, yet it nests on our doorsteps. These are just some of our Kiwi Battlers. Together we can help these species & eco-systems by eradicating predators, restoring native forests and bringing back our wild places. Together we can give a voice to nature and raise a clarion call for the future of these true Kiwi Battlers.
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 Little Blue Penguin
Our Little Blue Penguin nests along Wellington's coastline, and can be seen each day heading out for a days fishing. Living alongside a city filled with dogs and cars has its impacts though and despite their feisty nature, this pint-sized penguin only has 600 breeding pairs to its name.We're helping to protect the penguins in Wellington by undertaking pest control and providing nest-boxes to replace the forest-homes they've lost.
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 Fairy Prion
Our Fairy Prion has its last mainland breeding colony on a tiny ledge half way down a cliff on Dunedin's coastline. Rats, stoats, feral cats and dogs and coastal development have driven them from their once widespread mainland colonies. In Dunedin we are bringing them up the cliff and giving them a safe space to exapnd their colony by building a predator exclusion fence around this breeding site.
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 South Island Long-Tailed Bat
This "fantail of the night" used to live throughout the South island, however now they're rarely seen because their hardwood forest home has been logged and introduced predators decimate their breeding colonies. It is estimated that we may lose our native bats within a generation. Forest & Bird is working to turn around the fate of our Long-Tailed bat through a research and predator control programme near Pelorus bridge.
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 Wrybill
This native plover has developed a beak bent permanently to the right so it can prise insects found amongst rocks. For eons it has occupied the South Island's braided rivers - an area that has been dramatically impacted by the damming of rivers in recent years. The dual impact of developments such as damming and predation has sent their numbers into a dramatic decline (est 3,000 birds), so to reverse the situation we're controlling predators and working to promote environmentally sensitive river management.
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 Kaimai Mamaku Ranges
This is one of the largest continuous tracts of native forest in the North Island - and was once the home of kiwi and kokako. However, since the arrival of humans the assault on this forest has been relentless. Possums have chewed it bare, loggers have stripped it of its mighty kauri, and predators have picked off the native birds, resulting in local extinctions. The forest is now an echo of its former glory. The bird song is fainter, and the forest is a little emptier. We're working to restore the forest and eradicate pests, so that the kiwi, kokako, kaka and whio can return to this once-pristine forest.
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 Fairy Tern
Help! This bird has only 43 individuals to its name. Like us, it’s a beach-goer, however it’s easily frightened by dogs, people and 4WDs. The relentless march of coastal developments in the upper North island has added to their woes. The outlook for this bird is bleak, however we’re working hard to save the Fairy Tern. We’re educating people about this critically endangered bird and researching alternative breeding sites. Through careful management and public awareness initiatives, we hope to increase their population to 200 birds by 2020.
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