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Eastern Moa (Emeus crassus) |
| syn. Dinornis casuarinus, Dinornis crassus, Dinornis huttoni, Dinornis rheides, Emeus casuarinus, Emeus huttoni, Meionornis casuarinus, Syornis casuarinus, Syornis crassus, Syornis rheides |
| distribution: New Zealand: South Island |
| local name: - |
| size: ca. 70 cm
(at the back) extinction date: ca. 1500 |
| This was one of the smaller
species of Moa. Several skeletons have been found on New Zealand's South Island. Of at least two specimens of this species, which were found in the Pyramid Valley (Canterbury), the gizzard is preserved well enough to reconstruct their food, it consisted mainly of fruits of the genera Coprosma, Myoporum, Nertera, Pittosporum, Prumnopitys and Rubus. |
 left:Eastern Moa (Emeus crassus) Photo: Alexander Lang |
| References: - Trevor H. Worthy, Richard N. Holdaway: The Lost World of the Moa, Prehistoric Life of New Zealand. Indiana University Press, Bloomington 2002 |