Go With Me, Kiddos

Welcome to the special edition of Go With Me. This one is for those little adventurers who went with me to discover the Kiwi bird. When I last visited with you I had expressed interest in knowing more about this national bird of New Zealand. At that point, I had not seen one yet. But now…

At Te Puia Maori Village I had the opportunity to quietly observe several Kiwi birds. The Maori have built a nocturnal enclosure where visitors can silently watch their movements. It was dark in there and finding them was quite a trick, but that’s kind of the point! They don’t want to be seen.

What I know and What I Learned

When we last chatted I left you with some questions to research about Kiwi like where they live, what type of animal they are and how they behave. Now I have some information for you to analyze. Before you read any further, make 2-column notes to compare what you know to what you’re going to learn. On the left side is what you already know. Go ahead and list what you’ve found out about Kiwi birds since we last visited. Go ahead….I’ll wait for you…

Done? Nice! Now on the right side you’ll start listing things you’ve learned from the pictures below.

Honorary Mammal

I found the information about their course feathers interesting. Their feathers are more like hair. What surprised you from this info picture?

Kiwi Characteristics

I already knew that kiwi foraged for food at night. But, I didn’t know they got most of their water from what they eat, like earthworms. Eewww… Tell me what you found fascinating from this info picture.

Threats to Kiwi

During our hikes my husband and I would see stoat traps along the trails. They were rectangular boxes with a small hole in the corner for the animal to enter. We had no idea what a stoat was until a Department of Conservation Ranger explained that they are a small weasel. They were brought over to New Zealand years ago for people to hunt for their furs. Now the buggers are destroying the kiwi population. But, the trapping efforts are beginning to help.

Helping Kiwi

During our road trips we saw those distinctive yellow signs warning us of kiwi habitats nearby. Thankfully we never saw any dead or injured ones on the road. Those signs must be helping!

Kiwi Conservation

Thankfully, many good people are working hard to ensure successful kiwi recovery.

What Did You Learn?

What knowledge did you gain from these info pictures? Remember to add those facts to the right side of your 2-column notes. I’d love to hear from you either directly to this blog or in a private email. When responding directly make sure you leave your name off of your work and you get parental approval since this is a public blog.

And remember…..

Go With Me Somewhere…