Imagine an overgrown ostrich that weighed more than 600 pounds and stood 10 feet tall-the height of a basketball goal-and you have the giant moa. Now extinct, this big bird munched on twigs and branches on the islands of New Zealand, living there with little fear of predators-that is, until humans came along. Tribes that migrated to New Zealand wiped out the giant moa by the 17th century.
Bill: The giant moa had a strong, sharp bill. The bird ate like a browsing vegetarian mammal, using its bill to strip trees and shrubs instead of dining like an average bird on seeds, worms and insects.
Double Digestion: Rather than snip leaves from a plant's branches, the giant moa ate the actual branches. The creature had two stomachs to help digest its fibrous meals. The first helped dissolve the twigs with digestive acids; the other was filled with pebbles that ground the branches into pulp.
Moa No More[]
Scientists rebuilt the moa's skeleton piece by piece.
The giant moa was so big that it had few natural enemies in its habitat; only a large eagle, known as harpagornis, preyed on its young. Otherwise, the giant moa had free reign over the islands of New Zealand. That is, until people entered the picture. The Maori tribes, who lived on nearby islands in the South Pacific, settled on New Zealand in the 8th century. A mammoth bird like the moa had a lot of meat on its bones, and the giant moa soon became one of the Maori hunters' favorite targets. They had hunted the bird to extinction by the 17th century.
Grounded: How does a bird that can't fly end up on New Zealand? Scientists believe that the giant moa's ancestors had strong enough wings so that they flew to the island. Over time, the moa evolved into a heavy creature that didn't need to fly. With a lack of use, the wings became smaller and eventually this species was permanently grounded.
Enormous Eggs: This big bird gave birth to big babies, and the giant moa's eggs were nothing short of gigantic. One 11-inch-long egg was bigger than a gallon jug of milk.
The Amazing Moas[]
- The turkey moa was much smaller than its giant relative, about the size of (what else?) a turkey. This bird ran all over the open plains of New Zealand.
- The upland moa was the last surviving species of moa and lived until about 200 years ago. This bird hid in the mountains and was harder to hunt than the others.
- The giant moa was the biggest of them all. With its neck fully stretched out, it would have reached heights of 12 feet! But it likely stood with its neck slumped over, so it stood at about 10 feet.
Trading Card[]
Trivia[]
- The particular moa species featured on the card is also called the Dinornis.
- The Giant Moa's sole non-human predator, the Haast's Eagle, later appears in the Monsters of the Past group as well.
- The giant moa is featured on several Monster Mania cards:
- It is first featured in Fossil Finders on Monster Mania 56.
- The leg bones used for the game is also featured on the back of the knowledge card.
- It is then featured in The Giants on Monster Mania 65.
- It is once again featured in Timeline Tracker on Monster Mania 73.
- It is first featured in Fossil Finders on Monster Mania 56.