316 Mant ell's Apteryx at the Zoological Gardens.


have seen an Apteryx ajtstralis from Stewart Island frequently

kick backwards as well as forwards. The blow from a Kiwi’s

foot is strong enough to rip open a dog’s leg, and will cut a man’s

hand to the bone. As is well known, they are nocturnal in

habits, but at Tring several North Island Apteryx frequently

came out of their shed and basked in the sun. The cries of this

Kiwi could be heard nearly all over the little town of Tring,

when I had dozens of them alive in a paddock near the

Museum. They seem to cry when it pleases them, but by no

means more than usual on dark and wet nights ; on the contrary,

I think, most on clear, moonlight nights. They cry chiefly

between eight and twelve, and are apparently silent for the rest

of the night, but in winter they can be heard from about six to

ten o’clock and later. The cry of the male is a somewhat

hoarse, shrill whistle, often distinctly like Ki-i-wi, often shorter,

more in one syllable. The female answers in a less loud, harsher

and shorter, more screaming note. Sometimes, but rarely, a low

cackling or grunting note is heard, probably of both male and

female. When angry they hiss audibly, and when feeding make

a sniffling noise with their nostrils, evidently to clear them from

extraneous matter.


“ Their natural food is entirely worms, but occasionally

they are said to swallow seeds and fruits. I have had many

alive, some now in the ninth or tenth year. They delight in

earthworms, but live excellently on raw meat, chopped up in

small pieces, boiled potatoes and soaked bread. In this climate

it is best to allow them a free run in the open, on soft ground,

where they can probe for worms, and they must, of course, have

a low, dark, but dry, little room under ground, or made of a box.

This hiding place must be well covered, to keep warm in winter

and cool in summer, while artificial heat is quite unnecessary,

except in—for England—exceptionally cold winters.


“ They are nearly all, but more so the larger species, of a

very pugnacious disposition.”


Very little is known of the nesting habits of Kiwis ; in all

probability one egg only is laid to a clutch, though it has been

stated that two or three have been found together. The incu¬

bation period is also quite unknown. At the Zoological Gardens,



