1 Dollar - Elizabeth II 4th Portrait, Apteryx Owenii Kiwi, colored

New Zealand Post — distinct from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand — issues collector coins under a separate licensing arrangement, which is why pieces like this carry face value without ever being intended for circulation. The Apteryx owenii, the little spotted kiwi, was once widespread across both main islands before introduced predators collapsed mainland populations entirely; it survives today almost exclusively on Kapiti Island, where a managed sanctuary was established in the early twentieth century.

The applied color on .999 silver issues of this type is fired enamel, not printing — a detail that distinguishes the production cost from the more common pad-printed alternatives.