CHAP. XXI.] 
NEW ZEALAND. 
447 
Wingless Birds, living and extinct . — Almost equally valuable 
with mammalia in affording indications of geographical changes 
are the wingless birds for which New Zealand is so remarkable. 
These consist of four species of Apteryx, called by the natives 
“kiwis,” — creatures which hardly look like birds owing to the 
apparent absence (externally) of tail or wings and the dense 
covering of hair-like feathers. They vary in size from that of 
a small fowl up to that of a turkey, and have a long slightly 
curved bill, somewhat resembling that of the snipe or ibis. 
Two species appear to be confined to the South Island, and one 
to the North Island, but all are becoming scarce, and they will 
no doubt gradually become extinct. These birds are generally 
classed with the Struthiones or ostrich tribe, but they form a 
distinct family, and in many respects differ greatly from all 
other known birds. 
But besides these; a number of other wingless birds, called 
“ moas,” inhabited New Zealand during the period of human 
occupation, and have only recently become extinct. These were 
much larger birds than the kiwis, and some of them were even 
larger than the ostrich, a specimen of Dinornis maximus 
mounted in the British Museum in its natural attitude being 
eleven feet high. They agreed, however, with the living 
Apteryx in having four toes, and in the character of the pelvis 
and some other parts of the skeleton, while in their short bill 
and in some important structural features they resembled 
the emu of Australia and the cassowaries of New Guinea . 1 
No less than eleven distinct species of these birds have 
now been discovered ; and their remains exist in such 
correspond to the otter-like tracks, and the thick tail of an otter-like animal 
may well have appeared “ bushy ” when the fur was dry. It has been 
suggested that it was only one of the native dogs ; but as none of those 
who saw it took it for a dog, and the points on which they all agreed are 
not dog-like, we can hardly accept this explanation ; while the actual exist- 
ence of an unknown animal in New Zealand of corresponding size and 
colour is confirmed by this account of a similar animal having been seen 
about a century ago. 
1 Owen, “ On the Genus Dinornis,” Trans. Zool. Soc. Yol. X. p. 184. 
Mivart, “ On the Axial Skeleton of the Struthionidse,” Trans. Zool. Soc. 
Yol. X. p. 51. 
