Kiwis are small sized, odd looking and flightless birds. They look quite different from any other bird. Kiwis have many body parts that make them seem more like mammals. They are a national symbol of New Zealand. Unlike other birds, kiwis lack wings and a tail.

Kiwis are the only bird in the world that has nostrils at the tip of their bill. These creatures have a highly developed sense of smell which is most unusual in a bird. Their nostrils help them to find out food.

Kiwis do not fly like other birds and their bones contain marrow like that of mammals instead of hollow bones.

Kiwis can walk almost silently because of their large feet, tread muffled by fleshy footpads. Their ears are large and have a very good sense of hearing. Their eye sockets are not separated by a plate as most birds are. Instead, they are divided by large nasal cavities, just like most mammals. So in many ways, kiwis are different from any other birds Their skin is as tough as shoe-leather, their feathers are like hair, their bones are heavy and their body temperature is 38 degrees Celsius, lower than most other birds.

Hunting style

As the nostrils of kiwis are located at the end of their long beaks, they can locate insects and worms underground without actually seeing or feeling them. With the help of their fabulous nose and nostrils, kiwis are able to forage at night. Kiwi gizzards generally contain grit and small stones, to help in the digestion process.

Favourite food

Kiwis are omnivorous and eat both meat and vegetables. But they prefer meat. They mostly feed on small invertebrates, seeds, grubs and many varieties of worms. They also may eat fruit, small crayfish, eels and amphibians. Besides worms, kiwi like to feast on beetle larvae, beetles, crickets, fly larvae, spiders, caterpillars and snails. They also eat berries, seeds and some leaves. Kiwis do not need to drink often, as worms and beetle larvae are 85 per cent water.

Their home

Kiwis can be found in forests, scrub, grasslands and farmlands. They are the birds from New Zealand. They live in very diverse habitats, from mountain slopes to exotic pine forests. Kiwis make their homes in many different environments, from snowy lands to sand dune burrows, from mossy forest floors to rough grassland.

Young ones

Female kiwi usually lays one huge egg. Egg can be white to pale-green laid in a burrow that the female digs with her feet. Mostly the male kiwi incubates the egg. Although kiwis are about the size of a domestic chicken, they are able to lay eggs that are about six times the size of a chicken’s egg. From such a huge egg emerges a mature, fully-feathered and independent chick. The enormous yolk nourishes it before and after it hatches, with no help needed from the parents. Kiwi’s egg yolk the most nutritious of all birds’ eggs. The yolk sustains the newly born for their first week of life, by which time they can provide for themselves. Kiwi parents seldom feed their offspring.

Generally, kiwis have the life span of about 10-20 years. But may also live upto 40 years.