| Brief Description |
A tibiotarsus or shin bone, the largest bone in a moa’s body. Made up of a fused tibia and foot bones, it was partly feathered and flexed mostly at the ankle. A hole shows where DNA was sampled from the bone by Dr David Lambert, Massey University, to help construct a family tree for moa.
The North Island Giant Moa (Dinornis novaezealandiae), found throughout North Island forests, was one of two giant moa species. Females stretched up 3 m high, and DNA evidence from bones shows that they were twice the size of males. Giant moa were hunted to extinction 500 years ago.
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