The Kiwi bird is one of the cutest birds you will ever see on this planet. People not only love the Kiwi bird for its cuteness, but also for the interesting facts related to its behavior. As you probably know, the Kiwi bird is the national symbol of New Zealand and it has been present on the island long before humans settled there. This is actually a reason behind the behavior of the Kiwi bird. As their natural habitat was suddenly occupied by humans, and the number of other animals began to increase, Kiwi birds became nocturnal.

The intrusion of its habitat was very harsh on the Kiwi bird, because as it is flightless, its defense possibilities are limited. As a result, the Kiwi bird can mostly be seen in the nighttime. Also, the Kiwi bird is very shy and even lone. The Kiwi bird lives in beech forests, subtropical and temperate areas, but it has been also forced to adapt to different habitats, including tussock grassland, sub-alpine and alpine. Luckily, people can now get the chance to see the Kiwi bird more often, as the number of sanctuaries has increased. In these sanctuaries, the Kiwi bird can be even spotted in daylight, because there are no predators there.

The Kiwi bird has a very developed sense of smell, which compensates for its inability of flying. In fact, the Kiwi bird is the only bird with nostrils at the end of its long beak. This characteristic helps them locate insects and worms in the underground, with no need of seeing them. Other things that the Kiwi bird eats are small invertebrates, grubs and seeds, but also small crayfish, amphibians and fruit.

Perhaps one of the most special features of the Kiwi bird is that it usually mates for life. In this aspect, we may say that the behavior of the Kiwi bird is very similar to the one of humans, in the sense that once they bind, the Kiwi male and female live as a monogamous couple. Also, the male is the one to incubate the egg, which is usually very large in comparison to the little body of the Kiwi bird. Regarding its lifespan, the Kiwi bird can live up to 30 years. Unfortunately, these cases are becoming rarer, because the Kiwi bird is endangered and is facing many threats.