''Pachyornis'' is an

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

genus of

ratite A ratite () is any of a diverse group of flightless, large, long-necked, and long-legged birds of the infraclass Palaeognathae. Kiwi, the exception, are much smaller and shorter-legged and are the only nocturnal extant ratites. The systematics ...

s from New Zealand which belonged to the moa family. Like all

s it was a member of the

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

Struthioniformes. The Struthioniformes are flightless birds with a sternum without a keel. They also have a distinctive palate. This genus contains three species, and are part of the Anomalopteryginae or lesser moa subfamily. ''Pachyornis'' moa were the stoutest and most heavy-legged genus of the family. The most notable species being ''Pachyornis elephantopus'' - the Heavy-Footed Moa. They were generally similar to the

Eastern Moa The eastern moa (''Emeus crassus'') is an extinct species of moa. When the first specimens were originally described by Richard Owen, they were placed within the genus ''Dinornis'' as three different species, but, was later split off into their ...

or the Broad-billed moa of the genus ''

Euryapteryx The broad-billed, stout-legged moa or coastal moa (''Euryapteryx curtus'') is an extinct species of moa. These moa lived in both the North Island, North and the South Island, South Islands of New Zealand, and on Stewart Island. Its habitat was ...

'', but differed in having a pointed bill and being more heavyset in general. At least one species (''P. australis'') is assumed to have had a crest of long feathers on its head. The species became rapidly extinct following human colonization of New Zealand, with the possible exception of ''P. australis'', which may have already been extinct by then-although the most recent moa skeleton ever described is a partial skeleton of this species, radiocarbon dated to between 1396 and 1442. Two new genetic lineages, which may eventually be described as new species, are now known to have existed, one each from New Zealand's North and

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

. File:Giant moa.jpg, Restoration of ''

Dinornis giganteus The North Island giant moa (''Dinornis novaezealandiae'') is an extinct moa in the genus ''Dinornis''. Even though it might have walked with a lowered posture, standing upright, it would have been the tallest bird ever to exist, with a height ...

'' and ''

Pachyornis elephantopus The heavy-footed moa (''Pachyornis elephantopus'') is a species of moa from the lesser moa family. The heavy-footed moa was widespread only in the South Island of New Zealand, and its habitat was the lowlands (shrublands, dunelands, grasslands, ...

'', both from the

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

NZBirds
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3062168 Bird genera Ratites Holocene extinctions Extinct birds of New Zealand