Today I learned the distinction between the kiwi bird and the kiwifruit https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwifruit

I had always thought the latter to be a New Zealand fruit that is the source of the name "kiwi".

No, kiwifruit is Chinese. The more you know.

Kiwis also have a larger brain than other birds their size.

The causes and consequences of this are worth investigating.

A lot of animals have an architecture where they can’t carry a large brain, so a slightly larger brain is more of a hindrance than a help.

Bipedal animals can balance a heavier brain on their upright frame. But flying animals can’t afford too much extra weight.

I’m not sure what they do with the extra brain cells, but I suspect that their specially evolved nostrils would benefit from a powerful processing unit.

(Pigs for example have a large brain both in comparison to their body and in comparison to all other animals. I think the extra processing there is largely to support their incredible proboscis. Eg their legendary truffle hunting skills.)

I think our early human ancestor’s big brain was particularly useful for visual processing to assist with bipedal running/hunting.

In summary, they thought it was an evolutionary anachronism, a large egg left over from a larger body size because of assumed relationships with larger ratites like Moas. But subsequent genetic and fossil research challenged that.

The article mentions an emerging view it is about "precocity" - larger and better developed babies, and extra yolk being able to provide nutrition to the baby for longer.

Feels like the animal kingdom opposite of the panda--adults weigh upwards of 300 pounds, but baby panda birth weights are just under 1/3 of a pound.

I’ve read somewhere that Kiwis are in the running for being one of the closest genetic descendants / relatives of the T. rex and if they ever get off New Zealand and are relieved of the island dwarfism pressure…