Kiwi
Apteryx sp.
Where is it found?
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Species dependent but can be found in the forests, grasslands, scrubland and mountains of New Zealand.
Diet and foraging method
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Uses it's bill to probe soil, leaf litter and sand looking for prey and seeds.
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Key adaptations
Long slender bill for searching for food in the ground.
External nostrils at the end of its beak for sensing (vibrations and smell) prey. As a consequence, individuals have to snuffle and snort dirt from their nostrils.
External nostrils at the end of its beak for sensing (vibrations and smell) prey. As a consequence, individuals have to snuffle and snort dirt from their nostrils.
Social organisation and mating system
Live in family groups
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Breeding pairs may remain together for up to 20 years.
Did you know that...?
They lay huge eggs!
Kiwi eggs are six times as big as normal for a bird of its size and the eggs take up a whooping 20% of the mother's body - an Ostrich egg is only 2% of the mother's body mass!
Kiwi eggs are six times as big as normal for a bird of its size and the eggs take up a whooping 20% of the mother's body - an Ostrich egg is only 2% of the mother's body mass!
Taxonomy
Sources
https://www.kiwisforkiwi.org/about-kiwi/kiwi-facts-characteristics/enormous-egg/
http://www.arkive.org/tokoeka/apteryx-australis/
http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/factsheet/22678122
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_brown_kiwi
Maps from: http://species.mol.org/species/
Northern island Brown Kiwi: "Apteryx mantelli -Rotorua, North Island, New Zealand-8a" by The.Rohit - Elusive KiwiUploaded by Snowmanradio. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Apteryx_mantelli_-Rotorua,_North_Island,_New_Zealand-8a.jpg#/media/File:Apteryx_mantelli_-Rotorua,_North_Island,_New_Zealand-8a.jpg
Southern Brown Kiwi: "Kiwi and egg Picturesque New Zealand 1913" by Josiah Martin - http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Picturesque_New_Zealand%2C_1913.djvu/page409-495px-Picturesque_New_Zealand%2C_1913.djvu.jpg. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kiwi_and_egg_Picturesque_New_Zealand_1913.jpg#/media/File:Kiwi_and_egg_Picturesque_New_Zealand_1913.jpg
http://www.arkive.org/tokoeka/apteryx-australis/
http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/factsheet/22678122
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_brown_kiwi
Maps from: http://species.mol.org/species/
Northern island Brown Kiwi: "Apteryx mantelli -Rotorua, North Island, New Zealand-8a" by The.Rohit - Elusive KiwiUploaded by Snowmanradio. Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Apteryx_mantelli_-Rotorua,_North_Island,_New_Zealand-8a.jpg#/media/File:Apteryx_mantelli_-Rotorua,_North_Island,_New_Zealand-8a.jpg
Southern Brown Kiwi: "Kiwi and egg Picturesque New Zealand 1913" by Josiah Martin - http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/ba/Picturesque_New_Zealand%2C_1913.djvu/page409-495px-Picturesque_New_Zealand%2C_1913.djvu.jpg. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kiwi_and_egg_Picturesque_New_Zealand_1913.jpg#/media/File:Kiwi_and_egg_Picturesque_New_Zealand_1913.jpg