Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Aves

Family: Apterygidae

Order: Apterygiformes

Genus: Apteryx

Species: Apteryx

Subspecies: 

Brown kiwi.

Great spotted kiwi/roroa.

Little spotted kiwi.

Rowi.

Tokoeka.

Existence: Around 50 million years.

Closest Relative: Giant Elephant Bird

3 Ancestors: Ostriches, T Rex, Proto-kiwi

• Kiwis are small brown birds (some can be white, although rare) that cannot fly. 

• It’s mostly known for its small size and long beak 

• It can grow to be 24 inches long and 4 pounds. 

• They can live an austonding 25-50 years, but have a 95% chick mortality rate.

• Female kiwis are also bigger than their male counterparts 

Terrain: Live in New Zealand and Australia, and like to be in marshy areas with tall grass. They also like to live under logs.

How much rainfall: 600mm-1600mm of rain per year

Plants: Likes to eat acorns, walnuts, bugs, fruits and berries, and seeds. 

Animals: Prey to literally everything. Also hunted by local cats and dogs.

Temperature: Relatively cool, around 50°-75° on average.

Found In: New Zealand and Australia, but both areas are endangered

Likes to forage for nuts, seeds, and bugs.

Live in packs or solo: Can be either or, but mostly in pairs.

Roles within community: Kiwi’s a cherished by their community and give a strong spiritual connection that ties the people to nature.

Male or Female led groups: The males do a majority of the childcare.

Individuals that make up the group: The group is made of a mom, dad, and in some species, various siblings.

How do they interact with each other: In some species, the older siblings stay for years to help raise the new batch. In all Kiwi species however, the partners mostly stay monogamous for life.

How often do they mate: Once a year, but a Brown Kiwi can go twice 

How many mates do they have: One, unless they get ‘divorced.’

Time of year for mating: June-March, although Brown Kiwi’s don’t care.

Mating rituals: The male follows the female and grunts at her until she shows (or doesn’t) interest 

Number of offspring produced at a time: One. If there’s two eggs, the second one will drop around 25 days later.

Any unique characteristics of their mating: The Kiwi’s egg can take up to 20% of the moms full weight.

Stages of development: Finishing their egg yolk (about a week), venturing outside the nest, and learning from parents.

How old before sexual maturity: 18 months, but around 3 years until they lay their first egg.

Activities and environment of stages: They like to forage for juicy bugs and find them by stomping on the ground.

Difference between males and females: Not much, except for the females on average weigh more.

Predation: Stoats, which are ferret looking creatures, hunt and kill Kiwi’s.

Sexual Competition: Not much

Disease: Pneumonia while pregnant is a large threat to the species.

Other causes: Since they burrow under logs sometimes, people tend to step on them. Dogs and cats are also a growing problem 

Inter-species – within the species: Are extremely territorial over their mate and home.

Intra-species – with other species: Compete with stoats, dogs, cats and everything else for space.

What do they compete over: Food and shelter

Effect of invasive species: None

What is the rating? Listed under ‘vulnerable.’

Population: 68,000 

Population Trend: Going down about 20 a week.