Upland moa

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The upland moa, or moa pukepuke, was a small, flightless bird that lived only in New Zealand’s South Island. It lived in alpine and sub-alpine areas, up to about 2000 meters high, and disappeared around 1500 CE after Māori hunting.

Size and appearance
- One of the smallest moa species: less than 1 meter tall and about 17–34 kg.
- Covered in feathers over most of its body; it had no wings or tail.
- Likely stood with a slight stoop, not an upright neck.

What it ate and how it lived
- Herbivore that fed on leaves, herbs, and small twigs.
- Its beak could shear vegetation, and a large crop suggests it ground up food before digestion.
- Coprolites (fossilized dung) show it ate plants like tree leaves, lake-edge herbs, grasses, and nectar flowers.
- It may have moved between high alpine areas in summer and lower forests in winter, similar to how some living birds behave, and could have helped spread plant seeds.

Reproduction and care
- Lays 1–2 blue-green eggs at a time.
- The males likely cared for the young, as seen in other flightless birds.

Predators and habitat
- Before humans, its main predator was Haast’s eagle.
- It lived only in the South Island’s mountains and sub-alpine regions.

Fossils and science
- The upland moa has some of the best-preserved moa remains, including soft-tissue impressions.
- The holotype includes a mummified head and neck and two legs with feathers.
- In 2005, some scientists suggested Megalapteryx benhami should be considered a separate species.
- A 2009 study placed the upland moa in a broader family tree of moas.