An international team of researchers, including University of Otago archaeologists Chris Jacomb and Richard Walter, has successfully isolated ancient Moa DNA.

Their findings are being published today in the prestigious UK journal 'Proceedings of the Royal Society B'.

Jacomb says samples of Moa eggshell from New Zealand archaeological sites are among the fossil eggshell used to successfully extract ancient DNA.

He says this move opens up exciting new research possibilities not just for palaeontologists, but also for archaeologists, and is a powerful new tool in understanding how the demise of Moa occurred across New Zealand.

Email page link

Story feedback