THE CONDOR 
A Bi-Monthly Magazine of 
Western Ornithology 
Volume XXI May-June, 1919 Number 3 
[Issued June 6, 1919] | 
SOME NOTES ON THE EGG OF AEPYORNIS MAXIMUS 
By WM. C. BRADBURY 
WITH FOUR PHOTOS 
T HAVING been suggested to me that probably many readers of THE Con. 
por had never seen the egg of the extinet Aepyornis maximus, and that a 
description and photographs would be acceptable, I submit the following. 
Some three years ago, I first saw an egg of this species in the American 
Museum of Natural History, New York City, and immediately became imbued 
with a desire to possess one. Dr. F. A. Lucas, Director of the American 
Museum, kindly gave me the addresses of several. parties in London likely to 
be in a position to furnish a specimen, and with these I carried on a corre- 
spondence for nine months. This was unsuccessful, there apparently being 
no example of the Aepyornis egg to be obtained there. In discussing the mat- 
ter with Dr. Wm. T. Hornaday about that time, this gentleman at once put 
me in touch with the administrators of the estate of the late Robert Gilfort, 
of New Jersey, a world-wide traveler and collector, from whom I was for- 
tunate enough to secure the specimen here figured. 
Deciding that the egg would make a more attractive exhibit for the aver- 
age visitor if accompanied by eggs of modern species, varying in size from the 
largest to the smallest, I supplied these from the material available (see fig. 20). 
This exhibit was then presented to the Colorado Museum of Natural History, 
where it takes a place among the special features associated with the ‘‘ Brad- 
bury Collection of North American Birds’ Eggs.’’ 
Nearly or quite a perfect oval in form and measuring 9 9/16 by 13 inches, 
this egg is in a wonderfully excellent state of preservation. It weighs but 81 
ounces, and it is doubtful if it can be termed fossilized, or ‘‘replaced’’ through 
mineral deposition; rather, is it preserved by an impregnation of iron, associ- 
ated with calcite. There is some slight variation’ in color, but this is of a 
negligible character and the color tone may be described as a more or less 
uniform ‘‘buffy brown’’ (see Ridgway’s Color Standards). 
While figure 21 is a good representation of the egg, it fails to reveal suffi- 
cient minuteness of detail in texture of surface, and for that reason a natural- 
