Bird dinosaur bones uncovered in NZ: 25-02-2008
The fossils of seabirds dating back to the late Cretaceous period about 65 million years ago have been found in New Zealand.
Unearthed on a remote stretch of beach on the Chatham Islands, the fossils could be about 65 million years old and suggest that the birds co-existed with sea and land dinosaurs.
According to Jeffrey Stilwell of Monash University in Australia, the findings represent "New Zealand's oldest fossil aviary".
He found the fossil on a stretch of shoreline about 500 miles east of Christchurch after a storm had washed sand away from the bank and revealed bones.
Speaking to National Geographic, Mr Stilwell, said: "I don't know of any other site in New Zealand like it."
He said the birds were very tall and slender and ranged in height from 30cm to over one metre.