This photo taken from the outskirts of Motueka shows the late day sun picking out the foothills of the Arthur/Wharepapa Range, which dominates the skyline west of Motueka. Great spotted kiwi/roroa (Apteryx haastii) live in those mountains, due to the efforts of the Department of Conservation and the Friends of Flora. Predator control has been undertaken for nearly two decades in the Flora Stream area, and the first roroa were reintroduced in 2010. The first chick was born in 2012, and subsequent relocations through to 2016 have established what will, hopefully, be a sustainable population. The Friends of Flora Facebook page has a cool video of two kiwis calling to each other, one from the entrance to their nest burrow and the other from the surrounding bush. Sadly, it will be some decades before kiwi are common in the mountains.
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