Geyser the kiwi dies in suspected dog attack, Ngāti Rangi 'devastated'

• A North Island brown kiwi was found dead in a suspected dog attack in Rangataua.
• A spokesperson for Ngāti Rangi said the iwi was "devastated".
• Department of Conservation and Ngāti Rangi are urging dog owners to follow the rules and educate themselves.

Ngāti Rangi and the Department of Conservation (DOC) are calling for dog owners to "respect the rules" after a monitored North Island brown kiwi was found dead in a suspected dog attack.

Ngāti Rangi sees kiwi as a taonga species and even one death can have a "devastating" impact on their recovery, Pou Ārahi of Ngā Waihua o Paerangi Helen Leahy said in a statement.

"Brown kiwi can live for around 40 years, and the early death of a breeding adult male means the loss of generations of taonga," she said.

The kiwi, named Geyser, was released into Rangataua in 2015 alongside two others. The rangers found the other two monitored kiwi safe and almost ready to fledge their chicks.

Visitors can take up to two dogs into Rangataua Forest, as long as they have a DOC permit and have been certified as being "kiwi avoidance trained".

DOC supervisor Danial Van der Lubbe urged owners to "respect the rules" and educate both themselves and their dogs.

The Rangataua Forest Ecological Area is managed in partnership with Ngāti Rangi and the predominantly beech forest is also home to a large population of short-tailed bats and other native species such as kākā and kārearea.

Leahy said the iwi was looking to introduce more kiwi into the area in the future, "so it's imperative that we protect these taonga".

DOC and Ngāti Rangi called on the public to report roaming dogs on conservation land to the 24-hour DOC emergency hotline.

The Dog Control Act 1996 enables the destruction of any dog found to have injured or killed any protected wildlife, including kiwi, and the owner to be fined $20,000, and/or three years in jail.

This story was originally published by Stuff.