Eggshells—not bones—reveal the existence of previously unknown extinct birds
Forbes, Other, 20/03/2023
More than 1200 years ago, the island of Madagascar was home to an amazing collection of flightless ostrich-like birds standing more than three meters (9-10 feet) tall, weighing around 2200 pounds and laying eggs that were larger than a football. These magnificent giants were known as elephant birds. Today, all that’s left of these birds are a few scattered bones and eggshell fragments — and a lot of unanswered questions. Questions like: How many species were there? What did these giant birds eat? Do they have any living relatives? […] Lead author of the recent study, Alicia Grealy, now based at CSIRO, conducted this research as part of her doctoral thesis at Curtin University.