|
Pachyornis Australis
''Pachyornis'' is an extinct genus of ratites from New Zealand which belongs to the moa family. Like all ratites, ''Pachyornis'' is a flightless bird with a sternum that lacks a keel. They also have a distinctive palate. The genus currently contains three currently recognised species: the type species, ''Pachyornis geranoides'', ''P. elephantopus'' and ''P. australis''. Two distinct genetic lineages, one each recovered from the North and South Island, could possibly expand this number to five in the future. The three species of ''Pachyornis'' are the most stoutly built and heavy-legged across all species of Dinornithiformes, the species that exhibits the most extreme morphology of the genus is the heavy-footed moa ''P. elephantopus''. ''Pachyornis'' was generally similar to the eastern moa or the broad-billed moa of the genus ''Euryapteryx'', but differed in having a pointed bill and being more heavyset. At least one species, ''P. australis'', is assumed to have had a crest of l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Late Pleistocene
The Late Pleistocene is an unofficial Age (geology), age in the international geologic timescale in chronostratigraphy, also known as the Upper Pleistocene from a Stratigraphy, stratigraphic perspective. It is intended to be the fourth division of the Pleistocene Epoch within the ongoing Quaternary Period. It is currently defined as the time between 129,000 and c. 11,700 years ago. The late Pleistocene equates to the proposed Tarantian Age of the geologic time scale, preceded by the officially ratified Chibanian (commonly known as the Middle Pleistocene). The beginning of the Late Pleistocene is the transition between the end of the Penultimate Glacial Period and the beginning of the Last Interglacial around 130,000 years ago (corresponding with the beginning of Marine Isotope Stage 5). The Late Pleistocene ends with the termination of the Younger Dryas, some 10th millennium BC, 11,700 years ago when the Holocene Epoch began. The term Upper Pleistocene is currently in use as a p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Palate
The palate () is the roof of the mouth in humans and other mammals. It separates the oral cavity from the nasal cavity. A similar structure is found in crocodilians, but in most other tetrapods, the oral and nasal cavities are not truly separated. The palate is divided into two parts, the anterior, bony hard palate and the posterior, fleshy soft palate (or velum). Structure Innervation The maxillary nerve branch of the trigeminal nerve supplies sensory innervation to the palate. Development The hard palate forms before birth. Variation If the fusion is incomplete, a cleft palate results. Function in humans When functioning in conjunction with other parts of the mouth, the palate produces certain sounds, particularly velar, palatal, palatalized, postalveolar, alveolopalatal, and uvular consonants. History Etymology The English synonyms palate and palatum, and also the related adjective palatine (as in palatine bone), are all from the Latin ''palatum' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Holocene Extinctions
The Holocene () is the current geological epoch, beginning approximately 11,700 years ago. It follows the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene together form the Quaternary period. The Holocene is an interglacial period within the ongoing glacial cycles of the Quaternary, and is equivalent to Marine Isotope Stage 1. The Holocene correlates with the last maximum axial tilt towards the Sun of the Earth's obliquity. The Holocene corresponds with the rapid proliferation, growth, and impacts of the human species worldwide, including all of its written history, technological revolutions, development of major civilizations, and overall significant transition towards urban living in the present. The human impact on modern-era Earth and its ecosystems may be considered of global significance for the future evolution of living species, including approximately synchronous lithospheric evidence, or more ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ratites
Ratites () are a polyphyletic group consisting of all birds within the infraclass Palaeognathae that lack keel (bird anatomy), keels and flightless bird, cannot fly. They are mostly large, long-necked, and long-legged, the exception being the Kiwi (bird), kiwi, which is also the only nocturnal extant ratite. The understanding of relationships within the paleognath clade has been in flux. Previously, all the flightless members had been assigned to the order Struthioniformes, which is more recently regarded as containing only the ostrich. The modern bird superorder Palaeognathae consists of ratites and the Flying and gliding animals, flighted Neotropic tinamous (compare to Neognathae). Unlike other flightless birds, the ratites have no keel (bird), keel on their sternum—hence the name, from the Latin ('raft', a vessel which has no keel—in contradistinction to extant flighted birds with a keel). Without this to anchor their wing muscles, they could not have flown even if they ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bird Genera
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight Bird skeleton, skeleton. Birds live worldwide and range in size from the bee hummingbird to the common ostrich. There are over 11,000 living species and they are split into 44 Order (biology), orders. More than half are passerine or "perching" birds. Birds have Bird wing, wings whose development varies according to species; the only known groups without wings are the extinct moa and elephant birds. Wings, which are modified forelimbs, gave birds the ability to fly, although further evolution has led to the Flightless bird, loss of flight in some birds, including ratites, penguins, and diverse endemism, endemic island species. The digestive and respiratory systems of birds are also uniquely a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dinornis Giganteus
The North Island giant moa (''Dinornis novaezealandiae'') is an extinct moa in the genus ''Dinornis'', known in Māori as kuranui. It was a large, herbivorous bird belonging to the order Dinornithiformes, and exhibited a strong sexual dimorphism, with males weighing between 55 and 88 kg and females between 78 and 249 kg. It would have been the tallest bird ever to exist, able to stretch their heads to approximately 3 metres. ''Dinornis robustus'' inhabited the North Island of New Zealand, living in lowland habitats like shrublands, grasslands and forests, fulfilling a role as one of the largest terrestrial herbivores in New Zealand's ecosystem. It would have been primarily herbivorous, although consumption of fungi has also been proposed. They laid large, fragile eggs which were incubated by the males, although the exact method is unknown. Along with much of the other native fauna, ''Dinornis novaezealandiae'' disappeared from New Zealand around the 15th century, roughly 200 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Broad-billed Moa
The broad-billed moa, stout-legged moa, or coastal moa (''Euryapteryx curtus'') is an extinct species of moa that was endemic to New Zealand. Taxonomy ''Euryapteryx curtus'' is a ratite and a member of the lesser moa family. The ratites are flightless birds with a sternum without a keel. They also have a distinctive palate. A 2009 genetic study showed that the species ''Euryapteryx gravis'' is a junior synonym of ''E. curtus''. Following this, a study published in 2010 explained size differences among the remains as being a result of sexual dimorphism. A 2012 morphological study interpreted them as subspecies instead. ''E. c. curtus'', the nominate subspecies, was labeled the "coastal moa", while ''E. c. gravis'' was the "stout-legged moa". The cladogram below follows a 2009 analysis by Bunce ''et al.'': Habitat and distribution ''Euryapteryx curtus'' was one of the most widespreas moa species, inhabiting mostly open areas. These moa lived on both the North and the Sou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastern Moa
The eastern moa (''Emeus crassus'') is an extinct species of moa that was endemic to New Zealand. Taxonomy When the first specimens were originally described by Richard Owen in 1846, they were placed within the genus ''Dinornis'' as three different species. These remains would later be split off into their own genus, ''Emeus''. The other two species, ''E. casuarinus'' and ''E. huttonii'' are currently regarded as junior synonyms of ''E. crassus'', and the genus currently contains this single species. It has been long suspected that the "species" described as ''Emeus huttonii'' and ''E. crassus'' were males and females, respectively, of a single species. This has been confirmed by analysis for sex-specific genetic markers of DNA extracted from bone material; the females of ''E. crassus'' were 15-25% larger than males. This phenomenon — sexual dimorphism — is not uncommon amongst ratites, being also very pronounced in kiwi and the related moa genus ''Dinornis''. Descriptio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Island
The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south by the Foveaux Strait and Southern Ocean, and to the east by the Pacific Ocean. The South Island covers , making it the List of islands by area, world's 12th-largest island, constituting 56% of New Zealand's land area. At low altitudes, it has an oceanic climate. The most populous cities are Christchurch, Dunedin, Nelson, New Zealand, Nelson and Invercargill. Prior to European settlement, Te Waipounamu was sparsely populated by three major iwi – Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, and the historical Waitaha (South Island iwi), Waitaha – with major settlements including in Kaiapoi Pā near modern-day Christchurch. During the Musket Wars expanding iwi colonised Te Tau Ihu Māori, Te Tau Ihu, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North Island
The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List of islands by area, world's 14th-largest island, constituting 43% of New Zealand's land area. It has a population of which is % of New Zealand's residents, making it the most populous island in Polynesia and the List of islands by population, 28th-most-populous island in the world. Twelve main urban areas (half of them officially cities) are in the North Island. From north to south, they are Whangārei, Auckland, Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton, Tauranga, Rotorua, Gisborne, New Zealand, Gisborne, New Plymouth, Napier, New Zealand, Napier, Hastings, New Zealand, Hastings, Whanganui, Palmerston North, and New Zealand's capital city Wellington, which is located at the south-west tip of the island. Naming and usage The island has been known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ornithological Society Of New Zealand
The Ornithological Society of New Zealand (OSNZ), also known as Birds New Zealand, is a non-profit organisation dedicated to the study of birds and their habitats in the New Zealand region. Founded in 1940, it caters to a wide variety of people interested in the birds of the region, from professional ornithologists to casual birdwatchers. The Society publishes a quarterly peer-reviewed scientific journal, ''Notornis'', and a quarterly news magazine, ''Birds New Zealand'' (formerly ''Southern Bird''). It also organises membership-based scientific projects, such as the Atlas of Bird Distribution in New Zealand. History Following preliminary discussions in 1938 and 1939, the Society was formally established at an inaugural general meeting chaired by Robert Falla at Canterbury Museum on 24 May 1940. It became an incorporated body in January 1953.Gill, B.J.; & Heather, B.D. (1990). ''A Flying Start. Commemorating 50 years of the Ornithological Society of New Zealand, 1940–1990'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Type Species
In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological Type (biology), type wiktionary:en:specimen, specimen (or specimens). Article 67.1 A similar concept is used for suprageneric groups and called a type genus. In botanical nomenclature, these terms have no formal standing under the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants, code of nomenclature, but are sometimes borrowed from zoological nomenclature. In botany, the type of a genus name is a specimen (or, rarely, an illustration) which is also the type of a species name. The species name with that type can also be referred to as the type of the genus name. Names of genus and family ranks, the various subdivisions of those ranks, and some higher-rank names based on genus names, have suc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
