this is an unmistakable species, with its generally brown plumage (feathers) and darker head. its strong toes have much reduced webbing (skin between the toes), an adjustment to the lava flows on which it breeds. the nēnē goes about on land much more than other water birds. when moulting (dropping old feathers and growing new ones), the nēnē cannot fly, as do other geese, a factor which made it vulnerable to hunting.