Stewart Island kiwi

The Stewart Island tokoeka, Stewart Island kiwi, Rakiura tokoeka or Rakiura kiwi (Apteryx australis lawryi) is a subspecies of southern brown kiwi.  It lives in New Zealand.  This bird does not fly.  It runs on the ground.

Appearance

The Stewart Island tokoeka is the largest type of southern brown kiwi.  It has red-brown feathers that look like fur.  It has small wings and does not fly.  It has a long, curved bill, or beak. The nostrils are at the end of the bill, not at the top near the rest of its face.  Experts think the kiwi can smell very well.

Habitat and family
About 20,000 Stewart Island tokoeka live on Stewart Island.  Unlike other kiwis, they look for food during the day and at night instead of only at night.

Unlike other kiwis, the Stewart Island tokoeka does not live alone.  Instead, Stewart Island tokoeka live in families.  The baby kiwis stay with their parents for up to seven years.  They help sit in their parents' younger eggs.  This makes it so much easier to raise eggs that kiwi parents sometimes have two clutches, groups of eggs, each year.  It also goes onto the beach to look for food, which most other kiwis do not do.

Threats

Mustelids, for example stoats, never came to Stewart Island the way they came to the rest of New Zealand as invasive species.  So the Stewart Island tokoeka does not have stoats that try to eat its eggs and chicks. However, there are stray cats on Stewart Island, and they can be very big.

References

Category:Kiwis