• The Kiwi is New Zealand’s national bird and considered an evolutionary oddity. It differs from all other bird species on earth.

• Kiwis are considered "non birdlike" and fill an ecological niche elsewhere occupied by mammals such as anteaters and hedgehogs.

• Unlike other birds, the Kiwi has a strong sense of smell.

• The Kiwi’s nostrils are situated at the end of its beak, unlike other birds that have their nostrils near the back of their beak. Its beak is equipped with pressure and vibration detectors enabling it to detect its prey deep underground.

• The Kiwi lays the biggest egg in proportion to its body-size. Even though the Kiwi is about the size of a chicken, its egg is six times the size of a chicken egg. The largest recorded Kiwi egg weighed 500 grams.