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Kiwi are flightless birds endemic to New Zealand.At around the size of a domestic chicken, kiwi are by far the smallest living ratites and lay the largest egg in relation to their body size of any species of bird in the world.

The kiwi has tiny, rudimentary wings that are so small they are completely hidden beneath their thick covering of shaggy feathers. 

The kiwi is a member of the group of flightless birds known as ratites. Ratites have wings but the bones in their chests do not have the capacity for flight muscles, which is what a bird also needs to fly.