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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

References

Category:Kiwis
Category:Near threatened species