Draft nuclear and mitochondrial genome assemblies of the little bush moa. (A) 3D depiction of a little bush moa skeleton. (B) De novo assembled mitochondrial genome, with locations of annotated genes and RNAs indicated. The inward-facing plot shows the per-base depth of coverage (DoC). (C) Reference-based nuclear genome assembly (illustrated for the original moa assembly). Credit: Science Advances (2024). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj6823
Phys.org has a story about an extinct flightless bird from New Zealand. The genome of Anomalopteryx didiformis, the little bush moa, has been sequenced by a team of researchers that included scientists from Harvard University, the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, East Carolina University, Osaka University and the University of Toronto. A. didiformis went extinct about 500-600 years ago with the arrival of the Maori people in New Zealand. It was about the size of a large modern turkey. The research was published in the journal Science Advances.
The little bush moa was once one of the biggest birds in the world—about the size of a modern turkey, they went extinct shortly after the arrival of human settlers in New Zealand. Prior to that, they roamed the forested islands of New Zealand for millions of years. They were unique due to a complete lack of wings. Prior partial sequencing has shown that they had the genes needed to grow wings, but over time, they had mutated as the birds slowly became flightless land dwellers.
The fossil used by the research team came from a bird that was one of what are believed to be nine species of extinct Anomalopteryx didiformis. The team describes their results as the recovery of a complete mitochondrial genome of a male moa nuclear genome—a feat that was deemed challenging.
After sequencing, the researchers discovered that the birds had been able to see in the ultraviolet spectrum—an ability that would have helped them capture hiding prey. They also had what the group describes as a sensitivity to bitter foods—a trait common in modern birds. The data also showed that the likely population of the birds had once been as high as 240,000 and that the birds diverged from their closest relatives approximately 70 million years ago.
