The first kiwi chick of the season has just begun to hatch from its shell at Auckland Zoo in New Zealand.
The infant’s beak can be seen chipping away at its shell as it breaks through in footage captured by the zoo.
Posting the video to Facebook, Auckland Zoo said: “Kia ora kiwi chick! You’re the first chick of our 2018/19 Operation Nest Egg season that has started to hatch.”
Kia ora kiwi chick! You’re the first chick of our 2018/19 Operation Nest Egg (ONE) season that has started to hatch. Did you know? It can take up to 3 days for a kiwi to completely break out of its shell! Sometimes chicks, like this one, need a helping hand – in this case, our amazing bird keepers made a tiny hole in the shell’s surface to allow the chick to poke it’s beak out so it could breathe – can you see its nostril at the end of its beak? This is unique to kiwi. Many thanks to our Wild Work partners Thames Coast Kiwi Care and Kiwis for kiwi, who we work with to help kiwi at Auckland Zoo, on predator free islands and in the wild. Stay tuned for updates on how our chick is progressing!
Posted by Auckland Zoo on Wednesday, September 12, 2018
The zoo said: “It can take up to three days for a kiwi to completely break out of its shell!
“Sometimes chicks, like this one, need a helping hand – in this case, our amazing bird keepers made a tiny hole in the shell’s surface to allow the chick to poke its beak out so it could breathe – can you see its nostril at the end of its beak? This is unique to kiwi.”
