Kiwis are the only representativesratites, they are wingless and unable to fly. The adult has very small dimensions. The body of the bird is pear-shaped, the head is small, the neck is short. The weight of the animal is from 1, 5 to 4 kilograms. The kiwi bird has four-toed powerful legs and a narrow long beak with nostrils at the tip. The tail is missing. The animal has large light brown or gray feathers, reminiscent of thick wool. All individuals of this species are nocturnal. They have very developed sense of smell and hearing, and vision is weak.
Kiwi bird for its habitat selects rawswamped evergreen forests. In the afternoon the animal hides under the roots of plants, in a burrow or a hollow. Entrance to her home she carefully disguises, covering with twigs and leaves. At night, the kiwi becomes aggressive. During the mating season the animal protects its territorial area, (which in some cases takes from 2 to 100 hectares) from competitors. Due to strong legs and a powerful beak kiwi bird can inflict fatal injuries to the enemy. The individuals of this breed are very energetic, they can bypass the entire nesting area during the night. The boundaries of its territorial zone of kiwi are denoted by a scream, which is clearly audible at night even for several kilometers.
Hunting birds begin after thirty minutesafter sunset. Feet raking sod, and deeply immersing the beak in it, they are using their sense of smell to find their prey in the ground. They feed mainly on mollusks, insects, crustaceans, earthworms, fallen fruits and berries.
Kiwi is a monogamous bird, the pair is formed on 2-3marriage season, and in some cases, for life. Once every three days a male and female meet in the nest, and at night loudly echo. The mating season usually lasts from June to March. After 21 days after fertilization, a young female lays a fairly large egg weighing about 450 grams under the roots of a tree or in a burrow. It has a white or greenish tinge.
The egg is six times larger than the chicken and65% consists of yolk. During the period of his gestation, the female consumes three times more food than usual. Three days before the clutch, the bird stops eating, as the egg takes up a lot of space inside the body. It is interesting that the male is engaged in incubating the offspring, leaving the nest exclusively for the time of feeding. Some individuals are able to postpone the next egg after 25 days.
Usually the incubation period is 80 days,for 2-3 days the chick is selected from the shell outside. Young animals are born not with down, but with feathers. Immediately after hatching, the adults leave the pup. The first days of life the chick is still weakly on its feet, by the fifth day it is able to independently leave shelter and look for food. The life expectancy of individuals of this breed is on the average 50 - 60 years.
Kiwi-bird, photo of which is represented in thisarticle, is an unofficial emblem of New Zealand. Its symbol is depicted on postage stamps, coins, souvenirs, etc. The animal is listed in the Red Book.
