Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre is delighted to be hosting its first annual Community Open Day event in three years on Sunday the 25th of September. It will run from 10:00am until 3:00pm.
Our juvenile kiwi Tia and Kaewa won’t be the only kiwi legends you may see.
Westpac Ambassador and former All Black captain Richie McCaw will be joining us on the day!
“We are delighted Westpac New Zealand, a Silver Partner of Pūkaha, have invited Richie along to what will be a pretty special day out for the community here at Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre.” Says Emily Court General Manager at Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre.
A lover of the outdoors and strong voice for preserving our natural environment, Richie will take part in several activities, such as getting up close and personal with special Pūkaha residents like Kahurangi the Kōkako & taking part in a book reading.
Pūkaha is located 10 minutes south of Eketāhuna and 20 minutes north of Masterton. All of your whānau are welcome too with donation (koha) entry.
Monies raised on the day will be used to support native forest restoration and breed for release of endangered native bird species programmes carried out at the forest reserve.
As well as Richie McCaw visiting what else can you expect?
- Discover wildlife
- Native forest walks
- Ranger talks
- Fun kids activities
- Market stalls
- Food
- Whare Whakairo (carving studio) and much more.
Please bring cash for koha entry, food, and market stalls.
Please no pets or alcohol.
Limited carparking available. Please carpool where possible and make use of the free public buses. Buses are generously funded by Tararua District Council and Masterton District Council.
Free buses will be available from Dannevirke to Pūkaha; stopping at Woodville, Pahiatua and Eketāhuna. And from Masterton to Pūkaha. Bookings are essential via pukaha.org.nz.
Additionally, there will be a free shuttle bus running between the Eketāhuna Community Centre, Haswell Street and Pūkaha on the hour, every hour. No bookings required.
About Pūkaha: Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre is a wildlife reserve and captive breeding facility managed by the Pūkaha Mount Bruce board in partnership with Rangitāne o Wairarapa and the Department of Conservation. Through captive breeding, they have successfully reintroduced North Island Kākā, North Island Brown Kiwi and North Island Kōkako into their unfenced forest reserve (formerly part of the original 70 Mile Bush).
Pūkaha aims to educate and inspire the general public about conservation and New Zealand wildlife through their Visitor Centre, daily talks, and educational programmes. Pūkaha also works with whio (blue duck), pāteke (brown teal), and kākāriki. Pūkaha is open between 9:00 am and 6:00 pm during the summer.
