Great Spotted Kiwi

] Up to fifty burrows can exist in one bird's territory. They will often move around, staying in a different burrow every day. Bird's Nest Fungus sometimes grows in these burrows. Their habitat ranges in elevation from sea level to 1,500 m (5000 ft), but the majority are concentrated in a range from 700 to 1,100 m (2,300–3,300 ft) in a subalpine zone. These kiwis will live in tussock grasslands, scrubland, pasture, and forests.

Conservation

The Great Spotted Kiwi population started declining when European settlers first arrived in New Zealand. Before settlers arrived, about 12 million Great Spotted Kiwis lived in New Zealand. This bird is often preyed upon by invasive pigs, dogs, ferrets and stoats, leading to a 5% chick survival rate. It has more of an advantage than other kiwi species over these predators because it lives in high altitude areas, where the wet upland population thrives.cite web|url=http://www.savethekiwi.org.nz/AboutTheBird/TheKiwiFamily/Great_Spotted.htm|title=About The Bird:Great Spotted|work=Save the Kiwi|accessdate=2008-01-20] However, there has been a decrease in population of 43% in the past 45 years, and has declined 90% since 1900. Humans have also endangered the species by destroying their habitat by logging forests and building mines.cite web|url=http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2008/reiland_lian/Interactions.html|title=Great Spotted Kiwi Interactions With Others|work=University of Wisconsin|accessdate=2008-07-09] cite news|title= New Zealand State Coal Company Plans to Mine Kiwi Habitat|url= http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2004/2004-07-12-03.asp|work= Environmental News Service|date= July 12, 2004|accessdate=2008-07-11 ] Previously, humans hunted these kiwis for feathers and food. In 1988, the species was listed as Least Concern species. It is currently classified by the IUCN as a vulnerable species. The most threatened populations are in the southern areas of the species' range. About 22,000 Great Spotted Kiwis remain.cite web|url=http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/search/species_search.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=10&m=0|title= Great Spotted Kiwi - BirdLife Species Factsheet|work=BirdLife International|accessdate=2008-07-12] Movements for saving the Kiwi are in place, and sanctuaries for the Great Spotted Kiwi have been made. Thanks to intensive trapping and poisoning efforts the chick survival rate has been raised to about 60% in areas where mammalian pest control is udertaken.

Behavior

The Great Spotted Kiwi is nocturnal in behavior.cite web|url=http://www.centralpets.com/animals/birds/ratites/rtt4952.html|title=Great Spotted Main Page|work=Centralpets.com|accessdate=2008-04-20] If the Kiwis live in an area lacking predators, they will come out in the day. At night, they come out to feed. Like other species of Kiwi, they have a good sense of smell, which is unusual in birds.Cite web|url=http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2008/reiland_lian/Adaption.html|title=Great Spotted Kiwi Adaption|work=University of Wisconsin|accessdate=2008-07-09] Males are fiercely territorial. They have bad tempers and will defend their large territories fiercely. At most, four to five Kiwis live in a square kilometer. One pair's territory can be 25 hectares in size. It is not known how they defend such a large territory in proportion to their size. They will call, chase, or fight intruders out. Vocalizations of the Great Spotted Kiwi include growls, hisses, and bill snapping. Great Spotted Kiwi males have a call that resembles a whistle, while the female call is harsh and raspy.

Diet

In the ground, they dig for earthworms and grubs, and they search for beetles, cicada, crickets, flies, weta, spiders, caterpillars, slugs and snails on the ground. They will also feed on berries and seeds. To find prey, the Great Spotted Kiwi use their scenting skills or feel vibrations caused by the movement of their prey. To do the latter, a kiwi would stick its beak into the ground, then use its beak to dig into the ground. As they are nocturnal, they do not emerge until thirty minutes after sunset to begin the hunt.cite web|url=http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Apteryx_haastii.html|title=Apteryx haastii|work=Animal Diversity Web|accessdate=2008-04-20] Kiwis will also swallow small stones, which aid in digestion.cite web|url=http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2008/reiland_lian/Nutrition.html|title=Great Spotted Kiwi Nutrition|work=University of Wisconsin|accessdate=2008-07-09]

Predation

Because adult Great Spotted Kiwis are large and powerful, they are able to fend off most predators that attack them, such as stoats, ferrets, possums and cats, all of which are invasive species in New Zealand. However, dogs are able to kill even adults. Stoats, ferrets, possums, cats and dogs will feed on the eggs and chicks, meaning most chicks die within their first five months of life.cite web|url=http://www.apoec.org.nz/kiwi.htm|title=Kiwi|work=The Arthur's Pass Outdoor Education Centre|accessdate=2008-01-21] Once the Great Spotted Kiwi was also preyed upon by the Haast's Eagle, which is now extinct.

Reproduction

Great Spotted Kiwis are monogamous, with pairs sometimes lasting twenty years. Nests are made in burrows. The breeding season begins in June and ends in March, as this is when food is plentiful. Males reach sexual maturity at 18 months in captivity, while females are able to lay eggs after three years. In the wild, sexual maturity for both sexes is between ages three and five. Great Spotted Kiwi males chase females around until the females either run off or mate. The pair mates about two to three times during peak activity.cite web|url=http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2008/reiland_lian/Reproduction.html|title=Great Spotted Kiwi Reproduction|work=University of Wisconsin|accessdate=2008-07-06] The gestation period is about a month. Females do not eat during this period, as the eggs will take up a fourth of a kiwi's body mass. The egg is so large because the yolk takes up 65% of the egg. In most bird eggs, the yolk takes up about 35 to 40% of the egg. This makes the kiwi egg the largest in proportion to the body. Females must rely on fat stored from the previous five months to survive. Because of the large size of the egg, gestation is uncomfortable to the female, and they do not move much. To relieve the pain, females soak themselves in puddles when they come out of the burrows by dipping their abdomens into the puddle. The egg-laying season is between August and January.Cite journal|last= Cockrem|first= JF|coauthors= Goudswaard, R; Sibley, MD; Fox, EK; Johnson, TM; Bell, MJ|year= 1992|title= The breeding season of three species of kiwi (Apteryx ) in captivity as determined from egg-laying dates. |journal= Journal of Zoology|volume= 226|issue= 1|pages= 95-107|id= 792973584|url= http://md1.csa.com/partners/viewrecord.php?requester=gs&collection=ENV&recid=2678079&q=Apteryx+haastii&uid=792973584&setcookie=yes|accessdate= 2008-07-06]

After the female lays the egg, the male incubates the egg while the female guards the nest. Males only leave the nest for a few hours to hunt, and during this time, the female takes over. It takes 75 to 85 days for the egg to hatch. The baby kiwi takes 2 to 3 days simply to get out of its egg. Kiwi babies are precocial, and are abandoned by their parents after hatching. After ten days, chicks venture out of the burrow to hunt. Most chicks are killed by predators in the first six months of their life. Great Spotted Kiwis reach full size at year six. Unlike most birds, female Great Spotted Kiwis have two ovaries. Most birds have only one. Great Spotted Kiwis are distinguishable from other kiwi species by the fact that they can only produce one egg a year, as it takes so much energy to produce the massive egg.

References

External links

* [http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/search/species_search.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=10&m=0 BirdLife Species Factsheet.]
* [http://www.arkive.org/species/GES/birds/Apteryx_haastii/ Images and movies of the great spotted kiwi "(Apteryx haastii)"]
* [http://www.savethekiwi.org.nz/ Save The Kiwi]