Apteryx means "A-" without "pterux" wings, and "australis" from "auster" the south wind, and "-alis" relating to.

[3] Southern brown kiwi communicate vocally to aid in defending their territory.

[7] Males are more vocal and they both call in an upright position with their legs stretched out and their bill pointing up.

[3] The southern brown kiwi has a long slender bill with lateral nostrils at the tip, which helps give them their keen sense of smell.

They utilise this, more than sight and sound, to forage in dirt for invertebrates, including earthworms, beetle larvae, snails, crayfish,[10] spiders, centipedes, and orthoptera, as well as eels and amphibians.

After a few days the chick will exit the nest and feed on its own, although it may stay around parents for a year.

Adults are also under threat as dogs, ferrets, and brush-tailed possums, attack them and the juveniles.

[8] In 2018 a drought caused a poor breeding season for Haast tokoeka and killed three chicks; six were airlifted to Orokonui Ecosanctuary near Dunedin, and then on to a "creche" on Rona Island in Lake Manapouri, Fiordland.