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South Island giant moa (composite)
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Washington, DC, United States
The Mesmerizing Moa
Moa belong to the same group of flightless birds as ostriches, emus, cassowaries, rheas, and kiwis and include the tallest-known bird: the 10-foot-tall (3 m) Dinornis robustus. Females could be more than twice the size of males. While many land birds lost the ability to fly as they evolved to a giant size, only moa lost their wings entirely.
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Details
- Title: South Island giant moa (composite)
- Location: Peat deposits, New Zealand
- Physical Dimensions: Length: 143 cm Width: 92cm Height: 209 cm
- Type: Fossil
- Rights: This image was obtained from the Smithsonian Institution. The image or its contents may be protected by international copyright laws. http://www.si.edu/termsofuse
- External Link: View this object record in the Smithsonian Institution Collections Search Center
- Weight: 150 kg (estimated)
- USNM Catalog Number(s): V5521, cast of FMNH PA 35
- Scientific Name: <i>Dinornis robustus</i>
- Photo Credit: James Di Loreto, Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History
- Historic Period: 1.45 million–550 years ago
- Geologic Age: Cenozoic - Quaternary
- Field: Paleobiology
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