Part 72

Locality of Type: Glenmark.

Habitat: Middle Island, New Zealand.

{205}

CELA REICHENBACH.

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. {206}

CELA OWENI (HAAST).

Dinornis oweni Haast, Trans. Zool. Soc. XII, p. 171, pl. XXXI, XXXII (1886).

Cela curtus Hutton, Trans. N.Z. Inst., XXIV, p. 127 (1892), portion.

Dr. von Haast (Sir Julius von Haast) took as his type of Dinornis oweni the almost complete skeleton collected by Mr. Cheeseman in a cave at Patana, Whangarei, and now in the Auckland Museum. While referring my readers to the original diagnosis for the specific characters, I wish to specially draw attention to the fact that Dr. von Haast says that in the collections he examined, made by Mr. Thorne and Mr. Cheeseman, there are bones belonging to at least 20 skeletons of his D. oweni, and that some were even smaller than the type, and the only difference was the constant average difference due to sex. I draw special notice to this, as Captain Hutton has united this form with curtus, saying Haast's type is only a small individual of that species. The fact of bones of at least 20 different individuals, showing the same characters and the same differences from curtus, is quite sufficient evidence for me to consider Dr. von Haast's D. oweni as a distinct species. I append measurements of the leg bones of the types of Cela curtus and C. oweni:--

-------------+-------------------+----------------+--------------- | Tarso-metatarsus. | Tibio-tarsus. | Femur. -------------+-------------------+----------------+--------------- Cela curtus| 5.0 inches | 11.25 inches | 5.65 inches Cela oweni | 4.4 " | 9.6 " | 6.5 " -------------+-------------------+----------------+---------------

Locality: Whangarei.

Habitat: North Island, New Zealand.

CELA GERANOIDES (OWEN.)

Palapteryx geranoides Owen, Trans. Zool. Soc. III, p. 345 (1848).

Cela geranoides Hutton, Trans. N.Z. Inst. XXIV, p. 126 (1892).

This species is confined to the North Island. The type came from Waingongoro. It is most commonly found in the South of the Island.

Habitat: North Island, New Zealand. {207}

CELA RHEIDES (OWEN).

Dinornis rheides Owen, Trans. Zool. Soc. IV, p. 8 (1850--partim).