Basic Information
Scientific classification
- Chinese name: Great Spotted Kiwi
- Scientific name: Great Sported Kiwi (Apteryx haastii)
- Classification: Landfowl
- Family and genus: Order Aptrimales, Family Aptrimales, Genus Aptrimales
Vital signs data
- Body length: 45-56 cm
- Weight: 2.5-4kg
- Lifespan: Approximately 30 years
Significant features
New Zealand's national bird
Distribution and Habitat
The Great Spotted Kiwi is found in New Zealand, but is only found on the South Island, including Little Barrier Island.
Great spotted kiwis live in burrows, and the nests are not used until several weeks after they are dug. This allows time for moss and natural vegetation to regrow, providing camouflage.
Appearance
The Great Spotted Kiwi is 45-56 cm long, with males weighing 2.5 kg and females 4.0 kg. It is one of the most primitive bird species among sandpipers. It has a small head, a pear-shaped body, and is covered in fluffy, fine feathers that are soft and lack feather warts. Its vestigial wings are covered by feathers, and it lacks tail feathers, making it flightless. Its legs are short, thick, and powerful, allowing it to run at speeds up to 16 km/h. The kiwi has a long, slender, pointed beak about 10 cm long, with cat-like whiskers at the base. Its nostrils are located on the long, flexible tip of its beak, not at the base. Its eyes are small, with poor daytime vision. Its ear openings are large and well-developed, and it has long whiskers at the base of its beak (possibly for tactile sensation). It has a short neck, highly sensitive and well-developed ears, and mottled feathers ranging from charcoal gray to light brown. It exhibits sexual dimorphism, with females being significantly larger (by more than 1 kg). Unlike most other birds, it cannot fly and can only walk on the ground. Their legs are located at the rear of their bodies, short and stout, strong and muscular; all four toes have large claws. They possess powerful tarsi, with hexagonal horny scales along the front and rear edges of the tarsi. Each foot has four small, flat toes, three pointing forward and one backward, all with sharp claws, facilitating digging and searching for food in the ground.
Detailed introduction
The Great Sported Kiwi, scientifically known as Apteryx haastii, has no subspecies.
A pair of great spotted kiwis may dig up to 100 shelters in their territory, typically changing their dwellings daily. They do not leave their burrows during the day unless in danger, generally emerging at night. Foraging begins about 30 minutes after sunset. Their diet consists mainly of insects, snails, spiders, worms, and shrimp; they will even eat small lizards and mice, as well as fallen fruit and berries. Unlike thrushes or swallows, kiwis do not have their nostrils located at the base of their beaks, but rather at the tip. Their sense of smell is exceptional, allowing them to detect insects several centimeters underground, which they then dig out and eat using their claws or beak. Furthermore, their beak has an unexpected function—when they need to rest, it can act as a third leg, supporting their body like a tripod, providing ease and stability.
The Great Spotted Kiwi is a strictly monogamous bird. A pair stays together for at least two or three breeding seasons. The breeding season is in late autumn, with a gestation period lasting up to a month. During this time, the female must store enough fat to produce a well-nourished egg. Because they cannot fly, kiwis often nest in tree cavities at the base of the trunk, sometimes even on the ground. Kiwis are not prolific; females typically lay only one or two eggs per year. Although kiwis are not large birds, their eggs are enormous, weighing five times more than a typical chicken egg (400-450 grams), equivalent to one-quarter to one-third of the female's body weight. The eggs are white or pale green, and incubation takes 70-74 days, entirely the responsibility of the male. For the first week after hatching, the chick continues to consume the remaining yolk for nutrition before learning to forage and other survival skills from the male. The chicks take a long time (about four years) to mature.
Listed as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012 ver3.1.
It belongs to Appendix II of the Washington Convention: Class I protected animals.
Protect wild animals and ban the consumption of wild game.
Maintaining ecological balance is everyone's responsibility!
