Kiwis

By Harrison

I am learning to inform my audience through an information report 

What New Zealand bird is small, rare, native, nocturnal and cannot fly? If you said the Kiwi bird you are 100% correct! There are a lot of people who think there is only one species of Kiwi bird, but there are actually five different species of kiwi in New Zealand. They are, the North Island Brown Kiwi, Southern Brown Kiwi, the Great spotted kiwi, Little Spotted kiwi, and the rowi. Each of these species all live in a different part of New Zealand and have different diets, habitats and predators but are all relatively similar. One interest fact about the kiwi is that it can run up to the speed of a human, these means they need a healthy diet to power those legs.

Diet
Kiwis are omnivores because they eat both meat and plant to get energy. However the diet of a kiwi is mainly collecting small invertebrates, insects without a backbone that can be found under the forest floor and close to the ground. Luckily their diet can be found close to the ground cause the kiwi can not fly. They enjoy a diet of seeds, grubs, and a lot of different species of worm.They can also eat fruit, small crayfish, eels and amphibians. The kiwi diet is important in order for the kiwi to survive, a kiwi needs a habitat where all its needs are meet.

Habitats
There is no place like home and kiwis also love their homes. The habitat is a home for an animal that provides shelter, food and safety from predators. The kiwi is very adaptable and they live all over New Zealand. They aren't fussy animals and can adapt to any habitat. However they prefer places where they can burrow and find lots of food close by. They can live in forests, farmlands, sand dunes and even snow tussocks. The habitat protect the kiwi bird from predators. The kiwi sleeps in a small hole with an entrance which is usually underneath tree roots. The Kiwi has brown feathers to blend in with the ground, but the Little spotted kiwi has silver feathers so they blend in with the rocks.

Predators
Kiwi birds have many predators such as the stoats, ferrets, weasels, dogs, pigs, cats and possums. Kiwis need to stay safe! To do this we need to move them away from predators or take away the threat. The larger predators eat and attack the adult kiwi, while smaller rodents and animals attack the kiwi eggs and chicks. The rodents such as hedgehogs and weasels also present a problem as they both eat the same food as the kiwi. We need to make sure that these threats aren’t around for the kiwi.

In conclusion the kiwi is important to New Zealand because it is our native bird, that is a national symbol and is a rare bird to New Zealand. The kiwi needs a good selection and balanced diet, safe habitats that will protect them from the predators that can get to the kiwi as they live close to the ground. We need to start making changes to make sure the kiwi bird survives and does not become a forgotten bird.