Discover the remains of a giant penguin that lived 66 million years ago
The penguin remains are the second to be discovered in the area
Scientists found the fossilized remains of a giant penguin, about the size of a human, on New Zealand's South Island, on Wednesday.
The researchers explained that this "giant" seabird is 1.6 meters long and weighs 80 kilograms, four times heavier than modern penguins and 40 centimeters longer than it.
They called it Crossvalia aiparensis, and it was hunting off the coast of New Zealand in the Paleocene period, 66-56 million years ago.
Leg bones belonging to this giant bird were found last year by an amateur fossil hunter and scientists confirmed that this penguin is one of the new species discovered, in research published this week in the Australian Journal of Paleontology.
It is the second giant penguin from the Paleocene era to be found in the area, said Vanessa De Pietri, a researcher at the Canterbury Museum.
"This discovery reinforces our theory that penguins were larger early in their evolution," she added. Scientists believe that the huge penguins became extinct due to the emergence of other large marine predators such as seals and toothed whales.
Source: websites