moa Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun extinct flightless bird of New Zealand

WordNet


Mo"a noun
Etymology
Native name.
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) Any one of several very large extinct species of wingless birds belonging to Dinornis, and other related genera, of the suborder Dinornithes, found in New Zealand. They are allied to the apteryx and the ostrich. They were probably exterminated by the natives before New Zealand was discovered by Europeans. Some species were much larger than the ostrich.

Webster 1913