EATIT^. 257 



teresting of the forms in question occur in the Post-Tertiary 

 and Eecent deposits of New Zealand. In this island have 

 been found the remains of a number of large wingless birds, 

 which form the family of the Dinornithidce, of which Dinor- 

 nis (fig. 587) itself is the most important genus. All the 



Fig. 587. — Skeleton of Dinornis ekphantopus, greatly reduced. Post-Pliocene. New 

 Zealand. (After Owen.) 



members of this group {Dinornis, Falapteryx, &c.) are large 

 Cursorial birds, the wings being useless for flight, and fur- 

 nished with a rudimentary humerus. The hallux is wanting 

 {Dinomis) or present {PcdcvpUryx). The largest species is 

 the Dinornis giganteus, one of the most gigantic of living or 

 fossil birds, the tibia measuring a yard in length, and the 

 total height being at least ten feet. Another species, the 

 Dinornis ele-pliantopus (fig. 587), though not standing more 

 VOL. II. E 



