These curious flightless birds are confined to New Zealand, whence a specimen was brought to England as early as 1813. _Apteryx mantelli_, of the North Island, is deep red-brown with longitudinal streaks of yellowish-brown, the head being darker and the lower parts greyer; _A. australis_, of the South Island, is lighter, and feels soft instead of harsh when grasped. _A. oweni_, of both islands, is much smaller, and is light grey-brown, transversely marked with blackish bars. _A. haasti_, also said to occur in both islands,[28] is a larger and darker form of the last named; _A. lawryi_, of Stewart Island, hardly differs from _A. australis_; while _A. maximus_, of Verreaux, is a very doubtful species. Mr. Rothschild[29] has founded a sub-species (_occidentalis_) {40}on examples of _A. oweni_ from the North Island and the west of the South Island. In all these birds the lanceolate feathers have a hair-like texture, due to the disunited filaments of the upper portion, the lower part being covered with grey down, and the rhachis more or less exserted. The tibia is feathered, the bill being yellowish, and the feet brown or black. The female is similar, but larger, the young blacker. Mr. Lydekker has described a fossil species, _Pseudapteryx gracilis_, from New Zealand,[30] and Mr. De Vis _Metapteryx bifrons_ from Queensland.[31] Kiwis inhabit wooded country and hills up to the snow line; they are still met with at low elevations on a few islands, but their retreats are now chiefly on the slopes and in the gullies of the mountains, where a dense undergrowth of shrubs and tree-ferns shades a carpet of creeping vegetation and moss. Here parties of from six to twelve used to be seen, though in the breeding season they separated into pairs, but at the present day flocks can hardly be hoped for. In the daytime these shy birds hide in burrows in the ground, or natural cavities under tree-roots or rocks, while towards dusk they emerge in an animated condition. The direct rays of the sun seem to dazzle them, and they roll themselves up into a ball, if not disturbed; when stirred up they are somewhat sleepy and quickly retreat to cover. Lengthy strides carry them along at a great pace, the body being held obliquely with outstretched neck; and, if molested, they ruffle up the plumage and snap the bill, while striking viciously with their feet at the intruder, the leg being drawn up to the breast and the blow delivered downwards. Sometimes they rest upright with the point of the bill touching the ground, sometimes upon the whole metatarsus, but usually they are seen at feeding time cautiously moving from spot to spot, and tapping the soil or the walls of their cage with their long sensitive beaks. A sniffing sound accompanies this operation, and probably the smell of food assists in its discovery, yet the sense of touch is no doubt the primary agent. The diet consists chiefly of worms, in search of which the ground is deeply