Little spotted kiwi
The little spotted kiwi (Apteryx owenii) is a species of kiwi. This bird does not fly. It runs on the ground. The little spotted kiwi is the smallest of all kiwis.[2]
| Little spotted kiwi | |
|---|---|
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| Conservation status | |
Scientific classification 
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| Unrecognized taxon (fix): | Apterygiformes |
| Family: | Apterygidae |
| Genus: | Apteryx |
| Species: | A. haasti
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| Binomial name | |
| Apteryx haasti (Potts, 1872)
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Appearance
This bird has light brown-gray feathers with white bands. Its bill, or beak, is long and pale in color. Its legs and toes are short and dark.[2]
Habitat
In 2012, there were about 1650 little spotted kiwi alive.
Long ago, this bird lived all over New Zealand. However, by the time European people came to live in New Zealand, there were almost no little spotted kiwi left on the North Island. They still live on D'Urville Island. There are none left on New Zealand's South Island.
In 1983, human beings started bringing little spotted kiwi from Kapiti Island and other places to other islands where they can live and raise chicks away from weasels, dogs, and the other animals from Europe that were killing and eating them.[2]
Food
Little spotted kiwi look for food at night and hide during the day in burrows, hollow logs, or other hiding places. They live in pairs. Pairs of adult little spotted kiwi will fight each other over good places to look for food. They will scratch at each other with their claws and pull out each other's feathers. Little spotted kiwi look for food by touching the ground with their long beaks. They eat earthworms, insects, and other animals with no bones. The male kiwi and female kiwi will sing together as they look for food.[2]
Breeding
The kiwis make a nest in a hollow log, crack in a rock or space dug out of the ground. The eggs are white. The female lays one or two eggs at a time. Only the male kiwi sits on the egg.[2]
Little Spotted Kiwi Media
Little spotted kiwi (Apteryx owenii; kiwi pukupuku) egg held in a human hand at Zealandia EcoSanctuary, Wellington, New Zealand.
Illustration by J. G. Keulemans from a work by G. D. Rowley, 1870s
Burrow entrance, Zealandia
References
- ↑ BirdLife International (2016). "Little Spotted Kiwi: Apteryx owenii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN. 2016: e.T22678129A92756395. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22678129A92756395.en. Retrieved August 27, 2021.{{cite iucn}}: error: |page= / |url= mismatch (help)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "Little spotted kiwi". New Zealand Birds Online. Archived from the original on August 28, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2021.