Brown Kiwi (Apteryx australis) lives in temperate rainforest and shrubland across New Zealand. It feeds on earthworms and insects. Its conservation status is Vulnerable.
Hear the Brown Kiwi
A real field recording of the Brown Kiwi, made in the wild.
A single southern brown kiwi egg can weigh up to 430 g, which is 14-20 % of the mother's body weight, a proportion larger than any other bird's egg. This massive investment allows the chick to leave the nest almost immediately and fend for itself. The kiwi lays few, but well-provisioned, offspring.
Each kiwi defends a territory ranging from 4.9 to 43 hectares (12-106 acres), while home ranges of 5 to 50 hectares depending on habitat quality. When a neighbor trespasses, the kiwi's loud territorial calls act as an audible fence, a behavior that helps maintain these expansive zones.
Southern brown kiwis measure 45-55 cm (18-22 in) in length; females weigh 2.1-3.9 kg (4.6-8.6 lb) and males 1.6-2.8 kg (3.5-6.2 lb). Comparable data list a length of 45-54 cm and a weight range of 2.8-3.5 kg. Their compact, chicken-sized bodies, combined with a feather-like fur covering and a long, nostril-tipped bill, make them superb ground foragers, able to thrust deep into soil and locate prey by smell rather than sight.
The southern brown kiwi is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN, with an occurrence range of 9,800 km² and a 1996 estimate of 27,000 birds. Introduced predators such as stoats, cats, dogs, ferrets and brush-tailed possums prey on eggs, chicks and adults, driving declines. Stewart Island's stable population shows that predator-free islands can act as refuges.
Around 15,000 kiwi live in Fiordland, about 350 remain in the isolated Haast range, and roughly 20,000 inhabit Stewart Island, giving a total of about 27,000 individuals in 1996.
Sources
Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.
In the shadowy depths of New Zealand's forest, the brown kiwi moves with stealthy purpose, its long, hair-like feathers blending seamlessly into the underbrush as it probes the earth with its sensitive, whisker-like bristles. With a gentle, almost ethereal gait, this diminutive bird navigates the dark, humid world of the forest floor, its weak eyes compensating for its acute sense of smell and hearing. As it forages for invertebrates and worms, the brown kiwi embodies a quiet, unassuming resilience, its very existence a testament to the enduring power of adaptation in a fragile and threatened ecosystem.
Advertisement
Hear the Brown Kiwi, and 4,400+ more
Real recorded sounds, 11 nature games and a free Daily 5, 1v1 quiz duels, conservation wins and a safe Kids mode. Free on Feravox.
