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Kiwis are Pyrus communis - shaped , flightless birds with long legs and hooter . Though they look to be covered in fur , kiwis in reality have thin , hair - like feathers . Their close relatives are the emu , ostrich , cassowary and Rhea americana .
Size
A kiwi is about the size of it of a chicken . There are five species . The big is the northern brown kiwi fruit , which grows up to 20 to 25 inches ( 50 to 65 centimeter ) and count 3.2 to 11 lbs . ( 1.4 to 5 kilograms ) . The smallest is the small spotted Chinese gooseberry . It grows up to 14 to 18 inches ( 35 to 45 atomic number 96 ) and matter 4.3 lbs . ( 0.8 to 1.9 kg ) .
The kiwi ’s muscular leg make up around a third of its total body weight , and according to theSan Diego Zoo , a kiwi can outrun a person .
Kiwis ' wings are tiny , at around 1 in ( 3 cm ) . Each wing has a small pincer on the lead , though the chela has no know use .
The little spotted kiwi is the smallest species of kiwi.
Habitat
Kiwis are found only in New Zealand in forests , scrubland and grasslands . They log Z’s in burrows , hollow log or under obtuse flora .
Habits
kiwi vine are typically nocturnal , which mean they sleep during the twenty-four hour period and are active during the night . Throughout the night , they pass their time forage for food for thought .
When it ’s not foraging , it is patrolling its territorial dominion . It will leave behind extremely perfumed droppings to mark its domain as it walks . The only other Actinidia chinensis grant in its territorial dominion are its married person , its young and its adult child . If another kiwi does drift into another ’s district they will fight .
Diet
Kiwis are omnivores . They crunch on dirt ball , grub , bugs , berries and seed that they find with their excellent sense of smell . Kiwis are the only birds that have nostrils on the tips of their beaks . Most birds have nostrils closer to their side .
Offspring
Kiwis sometimes pair for life . Often , though , the female person will find a male she like better and entrust her current spouse .
kiwi fruit have one of the declamatory egg - to - body weight ratio of any bird . On intermediate , an egg is 15 per centum of the female ’s body weight , concord to theNew Zealand Department of Conservation . It can be up to 20 pct of her trunk weight , though , which is comparable to a 120 - lb . ( 54 kg ) woman founder birth to a 24 - pound . ( 11 kg ) baby , according to the San Diego Zoo . The female lay one to two egg at a prison term , up to three time per year .
Eggs have antibacterial and fungicidal properties to ward off bacterium and kingdom Fungi that are common in the mucky expanse of New Zealand . The male in the duad will sit on the eggs until they brood . The incubation full stop of a kiwi bollock is 75 to 85 days .
A great spotted kiwi.
Unlike other birds , bird kick their eggs open and are covered in plumage as soon as they hatch . They look like midget version of their parents . After a few days , the wench will leave the burrow and hang out with dad for around 20 daytime . After that , they may abide in their parent ’s territory for a while or trek out to regain their own .
dame often do n’t make it to adulthood . They have a 95 per centum chick mortality rate , harmonize to the San Diego Zoo . If they do make it to adulthood , they have very tenacious lives . Kiwis typically live 25 to 50 years .
Classification/taxonomy
Here is the taxonomy data for kiwis , consort to theIntegrated Taxonomic Information System :
realm : AnimaliaSubkingdom : BilateriaInfrakingdom : DeuterostomiaPhylum : ChordataSubphylum : VertebrataInfraphylum : GnathostomataSuperclass : TetrapodaClass : AvesOrder : ApterygiformesFamily : ApterygidaeGenus : ApteryxSpecies :
Conservation status
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature , thesouthern browned kiwiand thegreat spotted kiwiare listed as vulnerable . Thenorthern brown kiwiandOkarito brown kiwiare name as endangered , though the population trend for the northerly brown kiwi is currently stable and the population for the Okarito Chinese gooseberry is increasing . The fiddling spotted Actinidia deliciosa is listed as virtually threaten with an increase population .
New Zealand is losing around 2 per centum ( around 20 per week ) of unmanaged kiwi every year , according to the New Zealand Department of Conservation . There are around 68,000 Chinese gooseberry total in New Zealand .
Other facts
Kiwis have a body temperature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit ( 38 degrees Celsius ) , the broken of any bird , according to the San Diego Zoo .
These shuttle get their name calling from the sound of their calls . They communicate with others by making " kee - wee , kee - wee " voice .
Thesmall , fuzzy Formosan gooseberry , native to south Asia , was introduce into New Zealand in 1908 , according to Purdue University . Growers there in the 1960s start calling it " kiwifruit " to give it more market charm .
A northern brown kiwi.
extra resource
A kiwi crossing warns motorists. New Zealand loses about 20 kiwi per week.
