Apteryx mantelli also, where we have 5 inches 4 hnes in length by 3 inches 3 lines.
The egg of Apteryx haastii has yet to be found; but not much will be made out from this perhaps, as they apparently all follow the same law. I have before me the egg of a Moa of some kind, attributed to Dinornis ingens, Owen; its length is about 9 inches, and its transverse diameter about 6i inches. As the exact species of this example cannot be determined to my satisfaction, I do not propose to attempt to draw conclusions from it. The shell is thin in proportion to the size. The history of this great egg is well known. Fragments of the egg-shells of two species of Æpyornithidæ (which I possess through the kindness of M. Grandidier), on the contrary, are of extraordinary strength and thickness.
Captain F.W. Hutton, F.G.S., has an article on the eggs of the Moa and Apteryx ('Transactions of the New-Zealand Institute,' 1871, vol. iv. p. 166). He says, "the egg of the latter shows none of the prismatic structure of that of Dinornis; therefore the Moa belongs to the Struthious type, while the Kiwi, in the structure of its egg-shell, belongs to the Carinatetype of birds.
"Note. August 29, 1871.—Since reading this paper I have found the following notice in the 'Zoological Record' for 1869, pt. i. p. 103:—'Dinornis.—The structure of its egg-shell is essentially similar to that of other Struthiones, and agrees most nearly with Rhea. W. von Nathusius, Zeitschr. wissensch. Zool. xx. p. 118.' Also on p. 104—'Apteryx, in the structure of its egg-shell, does not much agree with other Struthiones.'"
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