Auckland Zoo

Our National Bird

Chances are you won't see our favourite flightless bird in the wild, but that doesn't mean you have to miss out. A symbol of the country’s armed forces, a ‘taonga’ (Maori treasure) and a byword for a New Zealander, the Kiwi is a national icon. Auckland Zoo's Kiwi House is the most visited in the world, but being nocturnal creatures it does take your eyes a while to adjust to their surrounds. Little-known fact: the Kiwi lays the largest bird’s egg in the world proportional to its size.