Moa birds are a vivid example of what can happen to humanity if the habitat becomes as comfortable as possible and devoid of various threats.
Moa story
Once upon a time, New Zealand was a paradise on earth for all birds: not a single mammal lived there (except for a bat). No predators, no dinosaurs. Scientists who studied the moa bird found a feather, examined DNA and found out that its first representatives arrived on the islands more than 2000 years ago. These birds were comfortable in the new conditions, because the absence of large predators made their existence very carefree. The only threat to them was only a very large haast eagle. The plumage of moa was brown in color with a greenish-yellowish undertones, which served as a good camouflage and sometimes protected from this bird of prey.
Moa did not have to fly away from anyone, so their wings atrophied, and later completely disappeared. They moved only on their strong legs. We ate leaves, roots, fruits. Moa evolved under these conditions, and after a while there were more than 10 species of these birds. Some were very large: 3 meters in height, weighed more than 200 kg, and the eggs of such individuals reached 30 cm in diameter. Some smaller ones: only 20 kg, called them "shrubby moa." Females were much larger than males.
The main cause of extinction
When the Maori arrived on the islands of New Zealand in the 13-14 centuries of our era, for the moa this was the beginning of the end. These representatives of the Polynesian peoples had only one pet - a dog that helped them hunt. They ate colocasia, ferns, yams and sweet potatoes, and the wingless birds of moa were considered to be of particular “goodness”. Since the latter could not fly, they became very easy prey.
Scientists believe that the rats brought by the Māori also contributed to the extinction of these birds. Moa is officially considered an extinct species that ceased to exist in the 16th century. However, there is evidence of eyewitnesses who were privileged to see very large birds in New Zealand in the late 18th - early 19th centuries.
Reconstructing the skeleton of moa
Scientists have long been interested in studying the extinct moa bird. On the islands there were many skeletons and egg shell remnants, which, of course, pleased the paleontologists, but they could not meet living individuals, although many expeditions were organized to almost all corners of the islands of New Zealand. The first to start studying the history of extinction and to investigate the remains of these birds was Richard Owen. This famous English zoologist and paleontologist recreated the skeleton of the moa along the femur, which served as a great contribution to the history of the development of vertebrates in general.
Moa bird description
The wingless moa birds belong to the moa-like order, the species is dinornis. Their growth can exceed 3 m, weight - from 20 to 240 kg. The moa clutch had only one or two eggs. The color of the shell is white with a beige, greenish or bluish tint. Masonry was incubated for 3 months.
Having done an analysis of bone tissue, scientists determined that these birds reached puberty after 10 years. Almost like people.
Moa is a rat-free bird; kiwi can be considered its closest relative. In appearance, it has the greatest resemblance to an ostrich: an elongated neck, a slightly flattened head, a bent beak.
Ate moa stunted plants, roots, fruits. He pulled out bulbs from the earth and plucked young shoots. Scientists found pebbles near the skeletons of these birds. They suggested that this is the contents of the stomach, because many modern birds also swallow pebbles to help crush food, so it is better digested.
New research
In the middle of the last century, a sensation thundered around the world. Allegedly, someone was lucky to take a picture of live moa. This was an article in one British publication, the photo was a blurry silhouette of an unknown bird. Later the deception was exposed, it turned out to be a common media invention.
However, twenty years ago, interest in this bird again rose. The naturalist from Australia put forward the idea that these birds can still be found on the islands, but not the large individuals that scientists expected to see, but the moa are small. He went to the North Island. There he managed to capture several dozen traces of a similar bird. Rex Gilroy - that is the name of the naturalist - cannot claim that the paw prints he saw really belong to the moa.
The second scientist refuted Gilroy’s guesses, because if these birds are really alive, then there would be much more traces.
