Our 14 hectare reserve preserves one of the largest remnants of coastal lowland swamp forest on the Kāpiti Coast and provides a haven for New Zealand’s native birds and wildlife. Our reserve has been managed by the non-profit charitable Ngā Manu Trust since 1974 and opened to the public in 1981. The reserve is accessible for all, with easy walking tracks that are wheelchair friendly and wind through swamp maire, puketea, kohekohe and 400-year-old kahikatea.

Our kaupapa is to preserve and enhance native forests so that their inhabitants can flourish, along with strengthening the connection between people and nature through education.

We contribute to national and local conservation through our involvement in many breed-for release programmes which seek to re-establish at-risk species of birds and reptiles into the wild. This has seen us participate in breeding programmes for kiwi, whio, pāteke, kāka, orange-fronted, red-crowned, yellow-crowned and Antipodes Island parakeet, tuatara, and Whitaker’s skinks to name a few. In addition to these programmes we have a long history in the treatment and rehabilitation of native birds, releasing as many as possible back into the wild.

Our Boosted campaign to create ‘Dwellbeings’ at Ngā Manu will enable our visitors to experience a wonderful synergy of art and nature and gain a deeper connection with the natural environment.