II. 



The History of the Moas, or Exthict Flightless 

 Birds of New Zealand. 



SINCE the memorable occasion in 1839 on which Sir Richard 

 Owen received the fragmentary thighbone that led him to infer the 

 former existence of Ostrich-like birds in New Zealand, the unfolding 

 of the history of Dinornis and its allies has been a subject of continual 

 interest. The Hon. Walter Mantell's early discovery of the bones of 

 these great Ratite birds mingled with charcoal in the refuse heaps of 

 the Maoris, sustained the hope for a long time that some few survivors 

 might be met with in one of the less known outlying districts of the 

 islands ; but subsequent researches have failed to realise the anticipa- 

 tion, and it is now tolerably certain that the race is quite extinct. 

 Under such circumstances, our knowledge of the Moas — as these birds 

 are termed in the Maori traditions — is based solely upon skeletons 

 and the mummified relics occasionally found in fissures and caves. 

 The determination of the genera and species is thus a matter of great 

 difficulty, and no two authors are in precise accord. At a meeting of 

 the Canterbury Philosophical Institute (New Zealand) in October 

 last, Professor F. W. Hutton read a memoir attempting a revision of 

 the whole subject, based upon the fine series of- skeletons now 

 preserved in the Colonial collections ; and a copy of this interes- 

 ting work has lately reached us. At the same time the Professor 

 has favoured his European colleagues with the reprint of a news- 

 paper article stating the results of his researches in connection with 

 the more general questions involved. This article has a bearing 

 upon problems of such wide interest that we make no apology for 

 reproducing it in its entirety, before discussing the important 

 advances made in matters of detail. 



I. 

 That the Moas have been a long time in New Zealand is certain. 

 In addition to the immense number of bones found in peat beds and 

 river alluvia of Pleistocene age, remains have been found near 

 Napier, and probably also near Wanganui, which belong to the 

 Newer Pliocene period. The bones of a small species of Moa, 

 found two years ago under a lava stream at Timaru, are still older 



