Discovery of Moa bones

Press, Volume CXIII, Issue 33128, 19 January 1973, Page 11

Discovery of Moa bones

Bones dug up on the banks of the Glutha by two young Christchurch i architects on a six-day I voyage down the river on tractor tubes have been identified as those of a species of moa. The director of the Canterbury Musuem (Dr R. S. Duff)) who examined the bones on Monday, described them as “of some geological antiquity.” They were fossilised remains, perhaps 20.000 years ’old. he said. The bones were brought back to Christchurch b\ the two architects, Mr A. J. Driscoll and Mr T. A. Scott, after successfully navigating the Clutha for about 170 miles, from its source at Lake Wanaka to Balclutha.

| ‘‘l felt pretty sure that thev were moa bones." Mr Driscoll said, "and Dr Duff identified them as a matching leftthigh femur and tibia. I found three tibia bones in all. which Dr Duff said indicated that this could have been some sort of swamp area—a typical locality for finds of moa remains. There was also a fossilised beak. “Dr Duff said that the bones belonged to the euryapteryx gravis family, a species standing about 5 feet 6in high.” Mr Driscoll said that, on Dr Duff's recommendation, he intended to take his find to the bones specialist at the Canterbury Museum when he returned to duty next month, and scientific conclusions might be drawn from them, and about the area in which

they were found. The find would not have been made if it had not been for a lowering of the Clutha caused by fluctuations in draw-off at the Roxburgh hydro scheme. The river dropped about four feet, and the bones were partly ex-! posed quite near to the architects’ tent on the river bank.

1 Next morning, the water rose again, lapping the tent, and covering all traces of the sites where the bones had been found. The experiences of the two men also included climbing trees to catch chickens for a Central Otago poultry farmer on whose land they camped, near Clydevale. “The farmer gave us a dozen eggs for our services, and we ate them at one sitting." Mr Driscoll said. “The farmer was a really fine old character who gave us a lot of advice about the river. "We got lost in the bush

one night for some hours, trying to find our tent m the Beaumont Gorge, alter an evening visit to the local hotel.** The only mishap, other than being tossed out in the Cromwell George, was when Mr Scott’s rubber tube was punctured when it struck a rusty nail in a submerged plank near Roxburgh Both architects are eni ployed by the firm of Bea ven Hunt Associates on drawings for the 1974 Commonwealth Games stadium and the pool in the Queen Elizabeth II Park