Perhaps the most iconic symbol of New Zealand is our very own chicken the Kiwi.
Of course Kiwis and chickens are both birds and Kiwis are about the same size as a
chicken - perhaps a small chicken. They have other characteristics in common too
but also some differences. Kiwi feathers might look a bit like fur but they are
feathers rather like the downy under feathers of chickens.
Chickens are found almost everywhere in the world but Kiwis are found only in
New Zealand.
There are around 68,000 Kiwi in total in New Zealand but there are
over 3 million chickens in New Zealand.
According to DNA studies the Kiwi's
nearest relative seems to be Mullerornis agilis - a large bird that is
now extinct but used to live in Madagascar. No one is quite sure how
Kiwis or their ancestors got to New Zealand
but we do know how chickens got
to New Zealand.
Kiwis and chickens both have pretty small wings for a bird their
size.
Actually a Kiwi's wings are even smaller than a chicken's wing.
Kiwi's wings are only about an inch long that's 3 centimetres.
And chickens are better at flying
than Kiwis are.
Chickens can actually fly
but Kiwi can't fly at all.
Apart from their tiny wings they have a flat breastbone without a keel bone.
Another reason Kiwis can't fly is that they are too heavy - Kiwis bones contain
marrow just like humans and other mammals while birds including chickens
have hollow bones which makes them a lighter and better suited to flying.
Both Kiwis and chickens are omnivores Kiwi like to eat worms grubs bugs fruit and seeds
and all of these are pretty tasty to chickens too.
Kiwi are nocturnal while chickens go out only in the daytime
at night they go inside their coop
Chickens can't see very well at night
and you might think that because Kiwi are nocturnal they must be able to
see well at night time but actually they can't see much in the dark either.
Kiwi use their acute sense of smell to find their food
In fact Kiwis that are totally blind can live quite normal lives without being able to see at all.
Kiwi are territorial
A Kiwi patrols its territory looking out for any other Kiwi
If another Kiwi does wander into another's territory they will fight.
Chickens are very sociable and like to spend time in flocks of between 3 and 30
other chickens.
Kiwis have a body temperature of a hundred degrees Fahrenheit - 38 degrees
Celsius the lowest of any bird.
Chickens' body temperature is more typical
at between 105 and 107 degrees Fahrenheit
that's 40 to 41 degrees Celsius.
Kiwis often mate for life
on the other hand
with chickens both hens and roosters are quite
promiscuous and will mate with any chicken that seems to have sex appeal at the time.
Kiwis live for about 25 to 50 years
some have lived for even longer in captivity.
Chickens live less than a quarter of that
Check out my video on how long a chicken can be expected to live.
Both Kiwis and chickens lay eggs.
Chickens like most birds have only one
functioning ovary but unusually female Kiwis have two functioning ovaries.
And both will lay a number of eggs called a clutch and then stop laying for a while
but Kiwi lay a clutch of only one or two eggs and then they'll incubate them to
hatch the chicks while a typical chicken will lay about six eggs in a clutch
before taking a short break and often will take a break of only a day before
starting to lay what is essentially the next clutch.
Only if the hen goes broody
will she actually stop laying and sit on the eggs to hatch them.
but although they
lay only a few eggs Kiwi eggs are very large typically about
300 grams - that's four times the size of a chicken's egg.
Imagine having one of
those for breakfast.
Unlike chickens it's the male Kiwi who sits on the egg to incubate them.
It takes 21 days for a baby chicken to hatch from its egg but it takes between
74 and 90 days for a baby Kiwi to hatch.
Baby Kiwis and baby chickens have to
break the eggshell to hatch out of the egg but they do it differently.
Baby chicks use a temporary egg tooth on their beak to peck open their shells.
The egg tooth falls off about a day after the chicken is hatched.
but Kiwi chicks don't have an egg tooth on their beak
so they have to kick the eggs open with their strong legs.
Here's some amazing footage of a Kiwi chick hatching at Auckland Zoo.
Isn't that an enormous chick!
And one last difference between chickens and Kiwis is that I have chickens in my garden
But I don't have any kiwi.
Wouldn't that be wonderful?
Thanks for watching