Kiwi
- any of three species of flightless birds belonging to the genus Apteryx
and found in New Zealand. The name is a Maori word referring to the
shrill call of the male. Kiwis
are grayish brown birds the size of a chicken.
Dwelling in forests, kiwis
sleep by day in burrows and forage for food—worms, insects and their
larvae, and berries—by night. They can run swiftly when required;
when trapped they use their claws in defense.
One or two large white
eggs—up to 450 g (1 pound) in weight—are laid in a burrow and are
incubated by the male for about 80 days. The egg is, relative to the
size of the bird, the largest of any living species. The chick hatches
fully feathered and with its eyes open; it does not eat for about a
week.
Although no longer
abundant, kiwis appear to be in
no danger of extinction and may even be gradually adapting to
semipastoral land.
"kiwi."
Encyclopædia Britannica from Encyclopædia Britannica
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