Detecting fossils of the world's largest parrot species one meter high

The parrot lives in New Zealand 19 million years ago and uses a large beak to cut food, thought to be the world's largest.

The researchers found fossils of ancient parrots more than a meter tall and weighed about 7 kg near St. Town. Bathans in Central Otago, New Zealand. This area concentrates many fossil birds dating from the Trung Tan world 2.3 to 5.3 million years ago. The results of the study are published in the journal Biology Letters on August 6.

Heracles inexpectatus is the largest parrot species in the world ever discovered.(Photo: CNN).

According to Trevor Worthy, associate professor at Flinders University, the author of the study has never discovered any fossil of a giant parrot extinct. He and his colleagues named the new Heracles inexpectatus species based on its size and strength. The most notable feature of the H. inexpectatus fossil is a large beak that helps animals to slaughter all types of food.

"The rarity of the H. inexpectatus fossil in sediment is something we can predict because it is higher in the food chain," said Mike Archer, a professor at the University of New South Wales, a member of the group. study, share.

At the time of H. inexpectatus, surrounding it were laurel and palm trees in subtropical forests, providing diverse fruits to play an important role in the diet of H. inexpectatus. The parrot is about the same size as the giant pigeon on the Mascarene Islands in eastern Madagascar and twice the kakapo, the largest parrot that lives today in New Zealand.