One small bird. One big journey.
Setting off from Cape Reinga today is a special hitchhiker - a soft toy kiwi pukupuku/little spotted kiwi dubbed “Lil’ Puku”. Thanks to tourism and conservation business RealNZ, he’s travelling the length of Aotearoa New Zealand to his new home in Fiordland, on the campaign trail for Bird of the Year 2026.
In the ultimate game of pass-the-parcel, Lil’ Puku will be handed between the public and some familiar faces as he makes his way down the country. “Ethically Kate” Hall, “How to Dad” Jordan Watson, “Sam The Trap Man” Gibson, and Kyle “Bare Kiwi” Mulinder have all put their hands up to take Lil’ Puku on a leg of his journey. The campaign is also being supported by ZM’s Fletch, Vaughan and Hayley, Duck Island Ice Cream, and Kiwi Rail.
Kiwi pukupuku are one of New Zealand's great conservation turnarounds. Almost the entire population, now estimated at around 2,100 birds, descends from just five birds moved to Kapiti Island in 1912 to save them from extinction on the mainland. They're the smallest of the five kiwi species, and widely considered to have the sweetest call of them all, a high-pitched whistle and trill that's become a rare and treasured sound in the New Zealand bush. As taonga species, they hold deep cultural significance to Māori, and bringing them back to Fiordland after more than a century away is as much about restoring what was lost as it is about the birds themselves.
Lil' Puku's route mirrors a real translocation RealNZ has spent a decade working toward. Since 2015, RealNZ has run an independent predator trapping programme on Ao-ata-te-pō Cooper Island, in Tamatea Dusky Sound, under a Community Agreement with the Department of Conservation, checking and resetting the island’s trap network four to six times a year. Cooper Island can never be fully predator-free given its proximity to the mainland, but ten years of sustained trapping have suppressed predator numbers enough for DOC to approve a translocation of kiwi pukupuku from Kapiti Island, planned for 2028. It will be the first time kiwi pukupuku are reintroduced to a predator-managed site outside a fully fenced or predator-free sanctuary, delivered in partnership with DOC and Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu.
RealNZ is funding the translocation and the ongoing conservation work behind it through its Real Promise, donating 1% of all online booking revenue between 1 May and 30 September 2026 to the kiwi pukupuku recovery project, on top of contributions from their gala Night for Nature event and other fundraising. The business is tracking to exceed their $300,000 fundraising target for the year.
RealNZ’s GM of Marketing, Sarah Bartholomew, says the campaign is designed to get people talking about conservation, with a fun and cuddly hero at the centre of the story.
“Bird of the Year 2026 is one of the most important elections this year, and we’re backing the smallest kiwi, a true fighter, to take the title. We’re excited to see the public get behind our little spotted friends and learn more about their next chapter, while we do the mahi to get Ao-ata-te-pō Cooper Island ready to become the home for real kiwi pukupuku from 2028.”
Voting for Bird of the Year 2026 is open from 4 to 20 September, with results announced 21 September. The public can follow Lil' Puku's journey and vote kiwi pukupuku in Bird of the Year 2026 at realnz.com/great-kiwi-roadtrip.