Great spotted kiwi  (Apteryx haastii)

Description

The national symbol of New Zealand and its people, the kiwi is both a cultural icon and a biological oddity (4). The five kiwi species are unusual, pear-shaped, flightless birds (2) that have evolved in the absence of any native mammals and therefore developed features that help it occupy a mammalian niche, to the extent that the bird has been referred to as an ‘honorary mammal’ (4). The skin is tough and leathery, the feathers like hair and the rudimentary, indistinct wings end in a cat-like claw (2) (4). The kiwi is one of the few birds with a highly-developed sense of smell and the only bird in the world with external nostrils at the tip of its beak (2) (4). The large feet have fleshy footpads and mean that it can walk almost silently (4), and the long, slender bill is excellent for capturing insects and other prey (2). As its name suggests, the great spotted kiwi is New Zealand’s largest kiwi species (4), and has a light greyish-brown plumage mottled with white (5).

left