Tag Archive for 'St Bathans Fauna'

Life reconstruction of the St Bathans bowerbird (Aeviperditus gracilis). Image credit: Sasha Votyakova / Te Papa / CC BY 4.0.

Tiny Fossil Reveals Previously Unknown Songbird Lineage from New Zealand

Oct 27, 2025 by News Staff

Paleontologists have found the 2.9-cm-long fossilized foot bone of a possible bowerbird species at the Miocene locality of St Bathans in Aotearoa New Zealand. Life...

Australian magpies (Gymnorhina tibicen), adult and juvenile, at Taveuni, Fiji. Image credit: Charles J. Sharp, https://www.sharpphotography.co.uk / CC BY-SA 4.0.

19-Million-Year-Old Currawong Fossil Found in New Zealand

Jun 27, 2025 by News Staff

Paleontologists have desribed a new species of large passerine bird based the fossilized remains from the Bannockburn Formation near St Bathans in Otago,...

The swamp yabby (Cherax latimanus). Image credit: McCormack & Raadik, doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.5026.3.2.

Giant Freshwater Crayfish Lived in New Zealand 20 Million Years Ago

Apr 18, 2025 by News Staff

The fossil record of freshwater crayfish is surprisingly sparse, comprising mostly trace fossils, some body fossils and rarely gastroliths. Paleontologists...

The kākāpō (Strigops habroptilus). Image credit: Jake Osborne.

Kakapo Parrot is True Ancient Species of New Zealand, Paleontologists Say

Sep 3, 2024 by News Staff

The kākāpō (Strigops habroptilus) is a living species of flightless parrot endemic to New Zealand. The kākāpō (Strigops habroptilus). Image credit:...