Kiwi chick hatched at Avifauna bird park; second kiwi ever born in the Netherlands

A kiwi chick was successfully hatched at Avifauna bird park in Alphen aan den Rijn, Zuid-Holland, the zoo announced on Friday. This baby kiwi is only the second to be hatched in the Netherlands.

"It's fantastic, this almost never happens," Pamela Stolze of Avifauna Bird Park said to AD. Avifauna bird park had its first kiwi birth in 2018. This was the very first kiwi ever hatched in the Netherlands. Attempts since then have not been fruitful. “Last year it went wrong right away, the baby kiwi was not healthy. But this one is doing very fine,” Stolze said.

The female chick was named Maia. In Maori culture, the name Maia means bravery and confidence. The name is a tribute to the indigenous people of New Zealand.

Kiwi births are especially unique due to the complicated process involved. The female takes three weeks to create and lay the egg. The kiwi egg is proportionally the largest, occupying so much space that the female cannot eat for a while. After that, the male embarks on a very long incubation period of approximately 80 days, the longest among birds. After hatching, the baby kiwi is assisted by its father for ten days before starting its independent life.

According to the zoo, Maia has passed this critical stage and is growing steadily. From a birth weight of 233 grams, she now weighs 330 grams. She is independent when it comes to feeding, especially as her parents are no longer involved. “She's doing very well. We weigh her every day," caregiver Simon van der Luit said to AD. "Last time, it didn't go well with the chick, but we immediately saw that Maia is strong, we had that impression right away. She's a brave girl. And we are confident that she is going to make it."

Visitors can only see Maia as she is weighed and measured, as she sleeps during park opening hours. North Island kiwis, which can only be found in the wild in New Zealand, are nocturnal and sleep during the day. At Avifauna bird park, the kiwis maintain this diurnal pattern of sleeping. Cameras installed in their habitat allow visitors to observe the sleeping kiwi without disrupting their natural rhythm.

The kiwi is classified as vulnerable, with its population on the decline. The threats are multifaceted, stemming from human activities, habitat loss, and predators like rats and martens.