North Island brown kiwi (Apteryx mantelli)

this is a male bird who became humanised (he had a leg problem and was at the vet a lot). Most kiwi hate being handled and get very stressed by it, but this one is a right odd little fellow and is very calm. Now he is at Wellington Zoo.

Note the size of the feet (used for digging and fighting) and the long whiskers (actually modified feathers). This is a young bird by the way, about a year and a half old. Still quite a bit of growing to do.

Photo taken February 2012

This is a cool picture and does show very well how well weaponized they are with those feet.

How long can kiwis live?

they can live to over forty years. Like a lot of NZ birds they are long-lived and slow-breeding.