Kiwi

The flightless, whiskered bird of the night

The kiwi is the symbol of New Zealand. It's as small as a chicken, can't fly, has feathers like fur — and whiskers! The kiwi is the only bird with nostrils at the tip of its bill: it sniffs the ground to find worms. A kiwi's egg is 20% of its body weight — for a child that would be like laying a 12 kg egg! New Zealanders call themselves 'Kiwis'.

The kiwi (Apteryx, 5 species) is a flightless bird endemic to New Zealand, a distant relative of the ostrich and emu (ratites). Wings 3 cm, no tail, hair-like feathers, nostrils at the tip of the bill — one of the best senses of smell among birds. Nocturnal, it feeds on worms and insects in the soil. Its egg is 20% of its body weight — proportionally the largest of any bird; the male incubates for 80 days. It evolved on islands with no mammals; cats, stoats and dogs introduced in the 19th century kill 95% of chicks. Numbers fell from 12 million to 70,000; the 'Kiwis for kiwi' programme is removing predators and rebuilding the population. It is sacred to the Māori people.

Fun facts

• A kiwi's egg is 20% of its weight — the biggest proportion of any bird.
• A kiwi's nostrils are at the tip of its bill — it hunts by sniffing the ground.
• A kiwi's wings are 3 cm — hidden under its feathers.