Zoo Miami upsets New Zealanders with treatment of kiwi

• One person who saw footage Tuesday from Zoo Miami promoting the encounters raised alarm that the bird, a nocturnal species, was being subjected to bright light, being handled by strangers, "petted on his sensitive whiskers, laughed at, and shown off like a toy."
• Citizens then jumped into action online, which prompted New Zealand's Department of Conservation to raise the matter with the American Association of Zoos & Aquariums.

Why it matters: New Zealand has no native land mammals and is protective of its many bird species.

• The kiwi is also revered by the indigenous Māori population.

The latest: Zoo Miami communications director Ron Magill went on New Zealand news shows Wednesday and issued a written apology, promising the kiwi encounters would end and that Pāora would be kept in an appropriately dark enclosure going forward.

• "I am embarrassed that we're in this position," he said.