moa
Extinct Kiwi relative
A moa is any of several species of large flightless birds native to New Zealand, all now extinct.
The largest stood over three meters tall.
Moas were hunted to extinction by Māori settlers, likely by the 15th century.
The word comes from Māori.
Fossil moa bones are still being discovered.
No longer existing
- vanishedDisappeared from sight
- overhuntingExcessive wildlife killing
- lostUnable to navigate
- demiseCessation of existence
eradication · extirpation · anthropogenic · overkill · habitat loss · deforestation · irrecoverable · bygone
Incapable of aerial travel
- giantBeing of huge size
- featheredCovered with plumage
- winglessHaving no wings
- ground-dwellingLiving on earth's surface
herbivore · browsing · grazing · beak · plumage · egg · terrestrial · bipedal
Indigenous name for NZ
- MaoriNew Zealand's indigenous people
- endemicNative to one area
- indigenousOriginating in a region
- PolynesianOf Pacific island peoples
South Island · North Island · native · isolation · tuatara · kiwi · kakapo
Ancient glacial geological period
- HoloceneCurrent geological epoch
- QuaternaryLast 2.6 million years
- keystone speciesOutsized ecological impact organism
- megaherbivorePlant-eater over one ton
Partially mineralized ancient remains
- excavationAct of unearthing
- boneHard skeletal tissue
- skeletonInternal supportive framework
- stratigraphyStudy of rock layers
sediment · paleobiology · paleoecology · geochronology · dig site · prehistoric · morphology · comparative anatomy
extinct
No longer existing
- vanishedDisappeared from sight
- overhuntingExcessive wildlife killing
- lostUnable to navigate
demise · eradication · extirpation · anthropogenic · overkill · habitat loss · deforestation · irrecoverable · bygone · disappeared
flightless
Incapable of aerial travel
ground-dwelling · herbivore · browsing · grazing · beak · plumage · egg · terrestrial · bipedal · vertebrate
Aotearoa
Indigenous name for NZ
- MaoriNew Zealand's indigenous people
- endemicNative to one area
- indigenousOriginating in a region
Polynesian · South Island · North Island · native · isolation · tuatara · kiwi · kakapo
Pleistocene
Ancient glacial geological period
- HoloceneCurrent geological epoch
- QuaternaryLast 2.6 million years
- keystone speciesOutsized ecological impact organism
subfossil
Partially mineralized ancient remains
- excavationAct of unearthing
- boneHard skeletal tissue
- skeletonInternal supportive framework
stratigraphy · sediment · paleobiology · paleoecology · geochronology · dig site · prehistoric · morphology · comparative anatomy · reconstruction
- moas
- extinctionmass extinction, dodo, extinct, extinction event, extinction rate
- New ZealandAuckland, Wellington, Air New Zealand, Kiwis, Christchurch
- Extinct Animalsdinosaur, dinosaurs, tyrannosaurus, dodo, mammoth
- extinct creaturesdinosaurs, trilobites, ammonites, mammoths, pterosaurs
- flightless birdsostrich, penguins, emu, ostriches, kiwi
moaeagle
Large predatory bird
albatross · hummingbird · swift · migratory birds · falcon