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CELAREICHENBACH.
Skull convex, the temporal fossae very large. Breadth at the squamosals 1.6-1.7 times the height at the basi-temporal. Length from the supra-occipital to the nasals rather less than the breadth at the squamosals. Occipital condyle hidden by the supra-occipital. Ridge between temporal fossae and supra-occipital narrow. Beak short, slightly compressed and rounded at the tip, though more pointed than in Anomalopteryx. Lower mandible nearly straight and rather slighter than in Anomalopteryx, V-shaped. Sternum with coracoid pits faintly indicated or absent; length less than breadth. Costal processes well developed, lateral processes diverging at different angles.
Pelvis broader in proportion than in Dinornis, the acetabula set more forward. Tarso-metatarsus shorter than the femur, and less than half the length of the tibio-tarsus. Hallux present in some species. The smallest species of Moa is Cela curtus.
Type of the genus: Cela curtus.
Number of species: 5.
CELA CURTUS(OWEN.)
- Dinornis curtus Owen, Trans. Zool. Soc. III, p. 325 (1846).
- Cela curtus Reichenbach, Nat. Syst. der Vög. p. 30 (1850).
- Cela curta Hutton, Trans. N.Z. Inst. XXIX, p. 550, pl. XLVII, Fig. B.
This and the following are the two smallest species of Moa, having been about the size of a large turkey. It also is the most abundant species at Whangarei, and appears to have been most common in the North of the Island. The type is from Poverty Bay.
Habitat: North Island, New Zealand.
