Surveys through the 1990's show numbers throughout mainland New Zealand dropping by an alarming 5.8 per cent a year. There are now about 75,000 kiwis left. If the present rate of decline continues numbers will be down to 50,000 by the year 2006 and many of these will be on protected off-shore islands.

The brown kiwi is still widespread in the central and northern North Island, but the little spotted kiwi survives only on off-shore islands. Around 1000 of them live on Kapiti Island, with transferred little spotted kiwi now well-established on Hen Island and Red Mercury Island in the Hauraki Gulf, Long Island in the Marlborough Sounds, and recently on Tiritiri Matangi in the Hauraki Gulf.

Introduced predators

Introduced predators are the biggest threat.

Stoats and cats kill 95 per cent of kiwi chicks before they are six months old. Adult kiwi are often killed by ferrets and dogs.