North Island brown kiwi

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North Island brown kiwi
TeTuatahianui.jpg
North Island brown kiwi
(Apteryx mantelli)
Male song
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Infraclass: Palaeognathae
Order: Apterygiformes
Family: Apterygidae
Genus: Apteryx
Species:
A. mantelli
Binomial name
Apteryx mantelli
North Island Brown Kiwi.png
The distribution of North Island brown kiwi
Synonyms
  • Apteryx australis var. mantelli(Bartlett 1852) Finsch 1872 [3] [4]
  • Apteryx australis mantelli(Bartlett 1852) Checklist Committee 1953
  • Apteryx bulleriSharpe 1888
  • Apteryx mantelli mantelliBartlett 1852
  • Apteryx mantelli novaezelandiae(Lesson 1828)
  • Apteryx australis novaezealandiae(Lesson 1828)
  • Dromiceius novaezelandiaeLesson 1828 nomen nudum

The North Island brown kiwi (Apteryx mantelli; Apteryx australis or Apteryx bulleri [5] as before 2000, still used in some sources) is a species of kiwi that is widespread in the northern two-thirds of the North Island of New Zealand and, with about 35,000 remaining, [2] it is the most common kiwi. It holds the world record for laying the largest eggs relative to its body size. [6]

Genetics

The genome of Apteryx mantelli was sequenced in 2015. [7]

Taxonomy

Brown kiwi chick Bul02Bird326a.jpg
Brown kiwi chick

Until 2000, the brown kiwi (then Apteryx australis) was thought to include the rowi and the tokoeka, in addition to the North Island brown kiwi. However using genetic codes from each of the above it was determined that the tokoeka was a separate species, it took the Apteryx australis name, leaving the brown kiwi with its current Apteryx mantelli name. Soon after, in 1998, more genetic tests were done with the rowi and it was determined that it (the rowi) was a separate species (Apteryx rowi). In 2004 an injured bird was found with streaked white around the head and identified by Massey University. [8] The white feathering is likely due to a rarely seen genetic variation sometimes described as a partial albino. Few documented cases exist with only a painting of one found in Ōtorohanga in the 18th century and a specimen in the Canterbury Museum. The injured bird recovered and was introduced into a breeding programme.

The brown kiwi was first described as Apteryx australis by Abraham Dee Bartlett, in 1813, based on a specimen from Dusky Sound, South Island, New Zealand. [9] This is a monotypic species. [10]

Breeding population and trends
LocationPopulationDateTrend
North Island [11] 25002008Decreasing -4% yr
Little Barrier Island [2] 25001996Stable
Ponui Island [2] Stable
Kapiti Island [11] Stable
Kawau Island [2] Stable
Total (New Zealand)5000 [2] 1996Decreasing -2% yr [11]

Range and habitat

Brown kiwi are found in a number of parts of the North Island, including Northland, Coromandel Peninsula, the eastern North Island, Aroha Island, Little Barrier Island, Kawau Island, Ponui Island, and the Whanganui Region. The North Island brown kiwi has demonstrated a remarkable resilience: it has adapted to live on scrub-like farm land, exotic pine plantations, and native forests, but it prefers dense sub-tropical and temperate forest. [12]

Description

A rare white Apteryx mantelli Apteryx mantelli (AM LB8581-2).jpg
A rare white Apteryx mantelli

Females stand about 40 cm (16 in) high and weigh about 2.8 kg (6.2 lb) the males about 2.2 kg (4.9 lb). The plumage is streaky red-brown and spiky. The North Island brown kiwi is the only species of kiwi found internationally in zoos.[ citation needed ]

Behaviour

These kiwi, like all kiwi, feed on invertebrates. They have 2–3 clutches a year with 2 eggs in each clutch. Chicks are fully feathered at hatching and are precocial, being able to leave the nest and fend for themselves within a week. [12]

Conservation

The North Island brown kiwi is Vulnerable, per the IUCN Red List, [1] with the major threat coming from predators, such as dogs, cats, and stoat (Mustela erminea). 94% of chicks die before breeding in areas where mammalian pest control is not carried out. [12] It has an occurrence range of 38,400 km2 (14,800 sq mi), with a population, estimated in 2000, of 35,000. [2]

In 1996 there were around 35,000 North Island Brown Kiwis and in 2006 there were 20,000. [13]

Nationwide studies show that on average only 5 percent of kiwi chicks survive to adulthood. However, in areas under active pest management, survival rates for North Island brown kiwi can be far higher. For example, prior to a joint 1080 poison operation undertaken by DOC and the Animal Health Board in Tongariro Forest in 2006, 32 kiwi chicks were radio-tagged. 57% of the radio-tagged chicks survived to adulthood. Thanks to ongoing pest control, the adult kiwi population at Tongariro has almost doubled since 1998.[ citation needed ]

In 2022, 11 North Island Brown Kiwi were released on Wellington's South Coast after a 100 year absence. [14] Fifty more kiwi were released into the hills of Wellington in May 2023. [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kiwi (bird)</span> Order of birds

Kiwi are flightless birds endemic to New Zealand of the order Apterygiformes. The five extant species fall into the family Apterygidae and genus Apteryx. Approximately the size of a domestic chicken, kiwi are the smallest ratites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weka</span> Species of bird

The weka, also known as the Māori hen or woodhen is a flightless bird species of the rail family. It is endemic to New Zealand. It is the only extant member of the genus Gallirallus. Four subspecies are recognized but only two (northern/southern) are supported by genetic evidence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Takahē</span> Species of bird

The South Island takahē is a flightless swamphen indigenous to New Zealand and the largest living member of the rail family. It is often known by the abbreviated name takahē, which it shares with the recently extinct North Island takahē. The two takahē species are also known as notornis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flightless bird</span> Birds that cannot fly

Flightless birds are birds that, through evolution, lost the ability to fly. There are over 60 extant species, including the well-known ratites and penguins. The smallest flightless bird is the Inaccessible Island rail. The largest flightless bird, which is also the largest living bird in general, is the common ostrich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern brown kiwi</span> New Zealand endemic bird species

The southern brown kiwi, tokoeka, or common kiwi is a species of kiwi from South Island, New Zealand. Until 2000 it was considered conspecific with the North Island brown kiwi, and still is by some authorities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great spotted kiwi</span> Species of flightless bird in New Zealand

The great spotted kiwi, great grey kiwi or roroa is a species of kiwi endemic to the South Island of New Zealand. The great spotted kiwi, as a member of the ratites, is flightless. It is the largest of the kiwi. The rugged topography and harsh climate of the high altitude alpine part of its habitat render it inhospitable to a number of introduced mammalian predators, which include dogs, ferrets, cats, and stoats. Because of this, populations of this species have been less seriously affected by the predations of these invasive species compared to other kiwi. Nonetheless, there has been a 43% decline in population in the past 45 years, due to these predators and habitat destruction. This has led it to be classified as vulnerable. There are less than 16,000 great spotted kiwis in total, almost all in the more mountainous parts of northwest Nelson, the northwest coast, and the Southern Alps. A minority live on island reserves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little spotted kiwi</span> Species of bird

The little spotted kiwi or little grey kiwi is a small flightless bird in the kiwi family, Apterygidae. It is the smallest of the five kiwi species, at about 0.9 to 1.9 kg, about the size of a bantam. It is endemic to New Zealand, and in pre-European times occurred in both main islands, but is now restricted to a number of small offshore islands, and mainland reserves protected by pest-exclusion fences. The little spotted kiwi was on the brink of extinction when a conservation effort took place 100 years ago. Five individuals were translocated from the South Island of New Zealand to Kapiti Island. Today, the Kapiti Island population has grown, with around 1200 birds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Okarito kiwi</span> Species of bird

The Okarito kiwi, also known as the rowi or Okarito brown kiwi, is a member of the kiwi family Apterygidae, described as new to science in 2003. The species is part of the brown kiwi complex, and is morphologically very similar to other members of that complex. It is found in a restricted area of the Ōkārito forest on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island, and has a population of only about 600 birds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birds of New Zealand</span>

The birds of New Zealand evolved into an avifauna that included many endemic species found in no other country. As an island archipelago, New Zealand accumulated bird diversity, and when Captain James Cook arrived in the 1770s he noted that the bird song was deafening.

A. australis may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haast tokoeka</span> Species of kiwi

The Haast tokoeka or Haast kiwi is a putative subspecies of the southern brown kiwi. It is one of the rarest kiwi in New Zealand. Like other kiwi, this bird is flightless.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wendi Roe</span> New Zealand veterinary pathologist and marine mammal researcher

Wendi Dianne Roe is a New Zealand veterinary pathologist who specialises in researching marine mammals. She is Professor of Veterinary and Marine Mammal Pathology and Deputy Head of the School of Veterinary Science at Massey University.

Apteryx littoralis is an extinct species of kiwi from New Zealand's North Island. The species was first described in 2021 based on the holotype, a complete left tarsometatarsus that was found in the Pleistocene (Calabrian)-aged Rangitikei Formation.

The Fiordland tokoeka or Fiordland kiwi is a subspecies of southern brown kiwi. It is endemic to New Zealand. Like other ratites, it is flightless.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stewart Island kiwi</span> New Zealand endemic flightless bird subspecies

The Stewart Island tokoeka, Stewart Island kiwi, Rakiura tokoeka or Rakiura kiwi is a subspecies of southern brown kiwi endemic to New Zealand. Like other ratites, it is a flightless bird.

Ixodes anatis, also called the kiwi tick, is a species of tick in the arthropod family Ixodidae. It is endemic to New Zealand and mainly parasitizes kiwi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isabel Castro (biologist)</span> New Zealand wildlife biologist

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References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2017). "Apteryx mantelli". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T45353580A119177586. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T45353580A119177586.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BirdLife International (2008)
  3. ↑ Gill; et al. (2010). "Checklist of the birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica" (PDF) (4th ed.). Te Papa Press. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  4. ↑ Ümüt Çınar (2015). "01 Pᴀʟᴇᴏɢɴᴀᴛʜᴀᴇ : Sᴛʀᴜᴛʜɪᴏɴɪfᴏʀᴍᴇs, Rʜᴇɪfᴏʀᴍᴇs, Cᴀsᴜᴀʀɪɪfᴏʀᴍᴇs, Aᴘᴛᴇʀʏɢɪfᴏʀᴍᴇs, Aᴇᴘʏᴏʀɴɪᴛʜɪfᴏʀᴍᴇs, Dɪɴᴏʀɴɪᴛʜɪfᴏʀᴍᴇs, Lɪᴛʜᴏʀɴɪᴛʜɪfᴏʀᴍᴇs, Tɪɴᴀᴍɪfᴏʀᴍᴇs & Rᴇfᴇʀᴇɴᴄᴇs" . Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  5. ↑ A History of the Birds of New Zealand
  6. ↑ Guinness World Records 2013, Page 050, Hardcover Edition. ISBN   9781904994879
  7. ↑ Le Duc, Diana; Renaud, Gabriel; Krishnan, Arunkumar; Almén, Markus Sällman; Huynen, Leon; Prohaska, Sonja J.; Ongyerth, Matthias; Bitarello, Bárbara D.; Schiöth, Helgi B.; Hofreiter, Michael; Stadler, Peter F. (23 July 2015). "Kiwi genome provides insights into evolution of a nocturnal lifestyle". Genome Biology. 16 (1): 147. doi: 10.1186/s13059-015-0711-4 . hdl: 11858/00-001M-0000-0028-1FE4-8 . ISSN   1465-6906. S2CID   3156484.
  8. ↑ "Massey News Article - do ya think I'm sexy?". Archived from the original on 18 February 2007. Retrieved 26 September 2007.
  9. ↑ Davies, S. J. J. F. (2003)
  10. ↑ Clements, J (2007)
  11. 1 2 3 Save the Kiwi (2008)
  12. 1 2 3 BirdLife International
  13. ↑ Sales, James (1 May 2005). "The endangered kiwi: a review". Folia Zool: 20. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  14. ↑ "Brown kiwi released on Wellington's southwest coast". RNZ. 22 November 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  15. ↑ "Fifty kiwi set to be released into the hills of Wellington". RNZ. 9 May 2023. Retrieved 8 May 2023.

Further reading

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