Aepyornis

… of New Zealand and the elephant birds of Madagascar may have reached over 3 metres (10 feet) in height.

Two such groups were the elephant birds of Madagascar and the moas of New Zealand, the largest in each group approaching 3 metres (10 feet) in height. Fragmentary fossil material from Eocene and Oligocene deposits in Egypt indicates that similarly adapted birds occurred there before the advent of large carnivores.

…taxonomies include three genera (Aepyornis, Mullerornis, and Vorombe), with the species V. titan being both the largest member of the family and the largest bird that ever lived.

Elephant birds (Aepyornis, Mullerornis, and Vorombe) were massive birds that lived on the island of Madagascar. Carbon dating suggests that the longest-surviving elephant bird species, A. hildebrandti, lasted in the island’s central highland region until roughly 1,300–1,560 years ago, when deforestation and