DISCOVERY OF MOA BONES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15578, 7 October 1912, Page 2 (Supplement)

DISCO V ERY OF MOA BONES.

AUCKLAND, September 20. An interesting and probably valuable discovery of moa bones has been made by Mr T. Smith, of Clcvedon, while putting in a drain in a swampy piece of ground on his farm, and ho has very wisely entrusted the excavation, collection, and care of them to the most enthusiastic collector of the district—viz., jMr H.A Munro,—and scicntjsts may rest assured that every bono possible will be got out.

The hones were struck in the middle of a quagmire through which the drain passed, and Mr Smith on pulling out a shank bone thought it to bo a human hone, but on putting it alongside his leg he found it reached to tho hip, so concluded thai it was rather too much of a giant's leg for a man. The liones arc about 3ft below' the surface, and have apparently been dropped in tho quagmire and loaded with timber to sink them, as_ heavy pieces of timber are intermixed with the bones. Up to the present the bones of moro than 30 birds have been found, the shank bones being in the best state of preservation, and as yet only one side of the drain has been excavatea.

September 25. With the recent discovery at Clcvcdon of the remains of a number of nioas fresh interest is aroused in the great wingless bird which once roamed New Zealand from the North Cape to the Bluff. Yesterday Mr T. F. Checsemnn, curator of the Auckland Museum, proceeded to Clcvcdon to examine the remains. The bones were discovered during draining operations on a rich flat at the foot ot a range, of hills Natural springs bubbleup in parts of the Hat, and it was wlulo endeavouring to drain the water from such a spring that the owner of tho farm happened to make his curious find. Not realising the. importance of the discovery, he left tho bones lying exposed on the surface, but subsequently mentioned his find to Mr H. S Mniiro, a settler of tho district, who is deeply interested in all forms of natural liistory. With infinite care and patience, Mr Munro carefully cleansed the remains and conveyed them to his home, he himself continuing the digging operations. Ho discovered large numbers ol other bones of all sines, each bone being added to tho previous assortment. Hn then commenced tho task of building up tho framework of one of tho birds, having at his disposal only the legs, toes, ami part of the bieastbone. Tho skeleton was examined by Mr Cheoseman, and ho discovered, after careful observation, that that was tho remains of one of the many species of moa, the Dinornis gracilis, tho bird which was, roughly speaking, about the size of an avciago ostrich. Examination of the other remains revealed that there, wore. p:irts of the framework of 26 birds of four and possibly live species, the largest bird being approximately 6ff; in height and the smallest about 3ft. Amongst the bones, which were found embedded in the rotten timber and decayed vegetation within an area of some- tow square yards, were discovered thousands of small pebbles. These, explained Mr Chcesemen, wero undoubtedly gizzard stones. The largest one weighed about 20oz. Another curious feature of tho find was the discovery of a nuinlwr of small rings, seemingly made of wood, and Tanging from three-quarters of an inch to ono inch .in diameter. These were, peculiarly enough tho ossified tracheal lings of the windpipe of tho moa. Commenting on tho discovery, Mr Cheoseman states that it was an extraordinary thing that such a large number of skeletons had ltecn found within such a small space. The flats had palpably once been swamp land, It was his opinion that a particularly dry summer had caused tho swamps to bocomo sufficiently firm to allow tho moa to roam about* in them in quest of food. Tho springs would naturally still continue to (low, and it was extremely probable that at different periods the birds had bocomo hogged and held as it were in a veritable death trap. The find was of a most interesting nature.