Anger in New Zealand over national bird: Zoo in Miami apologizes Predictions are clear: Erdogan is increasingly unlikely to be voted out

The Miami Zoo has removed visitors’ close encounters with a kiwi following outrage in New Zealand. The running kiwi (also known as the snipe ostrich) is New Zealand’s national bird and is only found in the Pacific Ocean. So far, those interested have been allowed to pet a specimen named Paora in bright light and take selfies with the bird for a fee of about $20 (18 euros) at the US zoo, as shown in a video circulated on the internet. However, kiwis are nocturnal animals.

On Tuesday, angry New Zealanders launched an online petition titled “Save this abused Kiwi”. Paora was sent to Miami Zoo as an egg in 2019 as part of a loan agreement between the Smithsonian National Zoo and the New Zealand government. “He has been domesticated four days a week and exposed to bright neon lights, touched by dozens of strangers, his delicate whiskers petted, laughed at and displayed as a toy,” the petition reads. “Kiwis are our precious treasures, not America’s toys.”

The Florida Zoo has now apologized “for the stress” caused by the video. Visitors’ encounters with the animal were “not well thought out in hindsight,” especially with regard to the national symbolism of this iconic animal, it said in a statement. The zoo thanked the New Zealanders for their “care, love and passion for this special bird”. A special habitat is now being created for Paora to “continue to provide him with the protection he needs while respecting and supporting his natural instincts”.

Distinctive features of kiwis are their fur-like, delicate feathers, their strong legs with large feet and sharp claws, their stunted wings and long beaks. The New Zealanders consider the eccentric proud as their symbol. Kiwis are classified as “Vulnerable” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List. (oee/sda/dpa)