What do kiwi eat?

What do kiwi eat?

Pencil and paperOnline interactive
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Further Resources
This task is about science investigations. 
What do Kiwi Eat?
How do scientists find out what kiwi eat?  They might think they eat worms and insects but it's difficult to be sure. Sometimes scientists might be lucky enough to see a kiwi probing around in the ground for food, but it throws food down its throat (gullet) from its beak so quickly that it’s impossible to see what it has eaten.
kiwi
Picture source: www.mtbruce.org.nz
The best way to find out is to collect kiwi droppings (poo). This is easy if there are only kiwi around in an area. However, if there are other similar birds around such as weka it could be confusing.
kiwi
Picture source: www.mtbruce.org.nz
Most of what we now know comes from scientists who work with the kiwi recovery and preservation programme. When kiwi are caught to be weighed and tagged they are put in bags. The kiwi often produce droppings while they are in these bags. The droppings are collected from the bags and checked carefully under a microscope to see what the kiwi has been eating.
In the droppings they have found hard mouth parts of insects and spiders. The mouth parts are different depending on the type of insect or spider.  They've also found bits of the waxy coating of different fruits. All these are examined under a microscope to decide which insects and which fruits are being eaten. The scientists then present the findings from their investigation to other people in a variety of ways.
To find out what kiwi ate, scientists had to carry out an investigation. 
There are 4 important steps in an investigation:
  1. Focusing and planning: Asking questions to direct the investigation
  2. Finding information: Carrying out the investigation, gathering all the data and checking it
  3. Analysis: Looking carefully at the data and thinking about what it means
  4. Reporting: Sharing what they found out
 
 

Question 1Change answer

a) Read the article again and write in the table to show what the scientists did at each stage of their investigation.
What scientists do Kiwi investigation
Focusing and planning
Finding information
Analysis
Reporting

Question 1Change answer

b)  Why might it be useful for scientists to know what kiwi eat? 

Question 1Change answer

c)  When scientists report on what they did, they often explain their reasons for carrying out an investigation in the way they did.
i)  In this investigation why didn't scientists just rely on observing the kiwi eating?
ii)  In this investigation why didn't scientists just pick up droppings from the ground?
iii) What problems do you think scientists might have had carrying out this investigation?
Task administration: 
This task can be completed with pencil and paper or online.
Copyright: 
Copyright: DOC, Pukaha, Mount Bruce (permission granted for use)
Level:
3
Curriculum info: 
Science, Understanding about science, Living World
Keywords: 
ecology, kiwi, scientists, investigation
Description of task: 
Reading text to find information about how scientists work. Assessment focus: interpreting information about how scientists work.
Curriculum Links: 
Science capabilities
The capabilities focus is brought about by the conversations you have and the questions you ask.
 
Capability: Gather and interpret data
This resource provides opportunities to discuss how scientists gather data and why this is important.
 
 

 
Science capabilities: 
Gather and interpret data
Making Better Sense: 
Endangered Species
Answers/responses: 
      Y6 (10/2005)
a) What scientists do Kiwi investigation  
1. Focusing and planning Scientists asked the question "What do kiwi eat?"
Answers need to indicate that the student knows that at this stage of the investigation the scientists designed an approach to answer a specific question.		 difficult
2. Finding information Scientists collect kiwi droppings. (They collect the kiwi droppings from the bags the kiwi are held in when they are being weighed and tagged.) moderate
3. Analysis Scientists examine the droppings under a microscope to see what the kiwi has eaten. (Finding body parts of insects and coatings of different plants tells them what has been eaten.) moderate
4. Reporting They present their findings in a variety of ways. moderate
b) Any of:

  • Kiwi will be fed appropriately in a kiwi recovery programmes / to ensure the food they need is available in their habitat;
  • The kiwi survives and does not become extinct;
  • They find out more about the kiwi;
  • The ecology of a kiwi habitat is not disturbed or endangered.
 easy
c) i) Any of:

  • It is not easy to see kiwi;
  • It is not easy to see what they eat / they eat too quickly.
 easy
ii) The droppings could be from a different bird or other animal. easy
iii) Any of:

  • Finding the kiwi;
  • Deciding on a way of getting the droppings;
  • Possibly frightening the kiwi.
 easy

Results are based on a trial set of 133 Year 6 students in October 2005.

Diagnostic and formative information: 

In question a)

  • 35 students completed the chart by copying the phrase "asking questions to direct the investigation" from the table provided, rather then using the information in the article "What do kiwi eat?" The subsequent questions appeared easier for students.

In question b)

  • Nearly all the responses emphasised the need for humans to provide the kiwi with food rather than an emphasis on the 'bigger picture' of the ecosystem in which the kiwi is found. For example, "So they know what to feed them at the zoo" was a common answer.
Next steps: 

In the trials of both this resource and a similar one at Level 5 many students had difficulty identifying a specific research question from the text. Reading similar accounts of research with a focus on identifying the question being asked could be a useful next step for some students.

Learning about how scientists work is important because:

  • It can help students develop skills in planning their own investigations by giving them opportunities to examine others’ investigations first. This can help alert students to possible pitfalls and planning decisions that need to be made.
  • It can help students understand that science involves particular processes and ways of developing and organising knowledge and that these continue to evolve.
  • It can introduce students to a variety of different sorts of investigations. In many schools the most common investigations carried out are fair tests. Learning about how scientists, in a variety of fields, work is one way of introducing students to other kinds of investigation.

Spratt, P. (2005) The Shell Collector. Connected 1, 2005. Wellington, Learning Media. This text could be used with the class or individuals to practise identifying the question being investigated. This article is an excellent example of a student carrying out a scientific exploration.
Ministry of Education (2001). Building Science Concepts Book 3, Birds. Wellington: Learning Media.
Jolly, J. (1991). Kiwi: A secret life. Palmerston North, New Zealand Natural History Foundation.

Websites
Department of Conservation, NZ. http://www.doc.govt.nz