Shy and retiring by nature, with a preference for solitude and the dark, few would describe Paora, 4, as a natural diplomat. Yet this Miami-based kiwi — one of about 60 of the flightless birds living in zoos outside their native New Zealand — has been forced into the international spotlight, literally and figuratively. Footage of Paora being petted by zoo visitors under fluorescent lights has caused an outcry in New Zealand, where it is common knowledge that the national bird is nocturnal and should not be handled other than by experts. Zoo Miami apologized this week, saying that it would no longer allow members of the public to touch him. “I immediately went to the zoo director, and I said, ‘We have offended a nation,’” Ron Magill, a spokesman for the zoo, told Radio New Zealand on Wednesday.

Source: New Zealand Herald May 25, 2023 06:29 UTC