While the endangered, noctural, flightless kiwi is the national animal

here in New Zealand, and there are lots of signs for them - 'kiwi crossing,' 'kiwi habitat, keep dogs on lead' - there are few signs of the long-beaked wormeater themselves. We've seen one so far, stuffed and under glass in the Auckland Museum.

However, the kiwi aside, the real star of the New Zealand animal show is the possum, introduced by the British from Australian in 1837. With 30 million of them now roaming the land - about 7 for every person - possums are the scourage of the country, chewing their way through native bush, including kiwi habitat, at a ferocious pace.

In some countries distances are ticked off by mile markers, however in New Zealand road distances are counted off by the bodies of fresh possums strewn across the highways and tufts of possum fur fused to the road from the passing cars. Up in the north where we are right now, the possum roadkill is thick and fast with a fur blob or fresh carcass every hundred metres.

And running down a possum on the highway here is national pastime sandwiched somewhere between rugby and cricket in the sporting heirarchy. Indeed it borders on being a national duty to swerving across the oncoming lane to bag yourself a fur ball and to don possum gloves and hats in the winter. It's good eating for the birds of prey too.