﻿Ha AST. — Moas and Moa Hunters. 87 



appeai'ed generally broken in tlie centre, but a few were also fractured on botli 

 ends. Of Dinornis didiformis, which with D. crassus, was next in number of 

 individuals, only one tarsus-metatarsics was intact ; the tibice were either broken 

 in the centi-e or more frequently on both extremities. Of the femora, a few 

 were collected, broken in the middle, but generally they had been left entire, 

 so as to suggest that the medullary contents, which must have been very small, 

 were not thought worth the trouble of extracting. Dinornis crassus seems 

 also to have occurred in lai-ge numbers on the plains, judging from the great 

 quantity of bones belonging to it. The metatarsus is only rarely broken, the 

 tihia always at both epiphyses, and the femur in the centre. Of Dinornis 

 elepluintoptts, bones belonging to a few specimens were collected, of which the 

 tihia is invariably broken, whilst the femur, and, in a few cases, the tarsus- 

 metatarsus, have been fractured in the centre. Oi Palapteryx ingens I obtained 

 remains belonging to at least three specimens. They are, however, a little 

 smaller in size than that figured by Professor Owen. All the three principal 

 leg bones, without exception, are broken at both extremities, and the inter- 

 mediate portion fractured to small fragments. The epiphyses also show clearly 

 how they have been scooped out to obtain the marrow. 



No bones of other species came into my possession, such as those of 

 Dinornis gracilis, struthioides, and the more gigantic forms, which, considering 

 that they are very rare in comparison with the species enumerated above, is 

 not surprising, and does not prove that they did not exist. Further excava- 

 tions in the same locality will doubtless afibrd us more information on the 

 subject. Of Cnemiornis, a bird with well developed wings and of the size of 

 the bustard, and of which I also collected some portions of the skeleton in 

 Glenmark, a few bones were also found at Rakaia. Small pieces of moa bone, 

 mostly derived from the leg bones, are very numerous, and lie generally upon 

 the refuse heaps. Occasionally they are burnt, so that it appears that the moa- 

 hunters generally threw the refuse of their meals upon the middens, and only 

 accidentally into the fire, unless we assume that they used the bones occasionally 

 as fuel. Phalanges of all the species already mentioned are present, and in the 

 same pi-oportions ; they are generally intact. Of the pelvic bone only one 

 large piece of Dinornis didiformis was obtained, but otherwise its fragments 

 were of frequent occurrence. They were probably broken up to get more 

 easily at the meat. The same observation also applies to the sternum, of 

 which only small pieces were found. Ribs and intercostals, generally broken, 

 are not rare. A great many vertehw, and occurring in the same proportion as 

 the leg bones, mostly in a good state of preservation, were collected. It is 

 remarkable that only in a few bones cuts or other marks could be observed ; 

 the reason may be that the larger bones, as already pointed out, were probably 

 broken with stone mallets. However, some of the smaller bones show clearly 

 the marks of the rude stone knives. 



