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Elephant bird egg

Museum of Natural History of Venice

Museum of Natural History of Venice
Venice, Italy

Fossil egg of elephant bird found in the dunes of Cape Sainte Marie in Madagascar. The elephant bird, now extinct, was gigantic in size and unable to fly: it could reach a height of over 3 meters and weigh over half a ton. It seems that its extinction occurred because of man around the sixteenth century. The eggs of this species are the largest in the world, as many as 100 times larger than chicken eggs.

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  • Title: Elephant bird egg
  • Rights: Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia Photo by Barbara Favaretto - MSNVE
  • Scientific name: Aepyornis maximus
  • Origin: Africa, southern Madagascar, Cape Sainte Marie
  • Date: 1952
  • Catalogue number: MSNVE-3650
Museum of Natural History of Venice

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