GEOLOGY. 53 



scribed no fewer than 18 species of these extinct running birds, vary- 

 ing in size from 3 to upwards of 10 feet in height. 



Fig. 23. — a, Skeleton of the " Elephant-footed Moa," Dinornis elephantopus (Owen), from 

 New Zealand, b, Leg-bones of Dinornis giganleus (Owen), one of the largest of the 

 extinct Wingless Birds of New Zealand. 



The ancient Maoris, when they landed, no doubt feasted on these 

 huge birds as long as any remained, and their extermination probably 

 only dates back to a little before these Islands were thrice visited by 

 Captain Cook, 1769-1778. Their charred bones and egg-shells have 

 been noticed by the Honourable Walter Mantell, mixed with char- 

 coal where the native ovens and fires were formerly made ; and their 

 eggs are said to have been found in Maori graves. 



In July of the present year (1882), the Trustees obtained from a 

 fissure-cave in Otago, New Zealand, the head, neck, and two legs and 

 feet of a " Moa " (Dinornis didinus), having the skin still preserved 

 in a dried state covering the bones, and some few feathers of a reddish 

 hue still preserved on the leg. The tracheal rings of the windpipe 

 may also still be seen in situ, and the sclerotic plates of the eye and 



