| 释义 |
æpyornis|iːpɪˈɔːnɪs, ɛ-|
[mod.L. (I. G. St.-Hilaire 1850, in Ann. Sci. Nat. (Zool.) XIV. 209), f. Gr. αἰπύς high + ὄρνις bird.]
A genus of extinct gigantic struthious birds known from remains discovered in Madagascar; a bird of this genus.
1851Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. VII. 163 The gigantic bird of Madagascar... We shall give to this genus the name of æpyornis. 1883Encycl. Brit. XV. 171/1 Madagascar was the home of..the extinct æpyornis, whose eggs, found in a sub-fossil state, are the largest known. 1895[see Dromornis]. 1927Haldane & Huxley Anim. Biol. xii. 277 Largest flightless birds (Moa, Aepyornis, large Ostrich). 1957R. Carrington Mermaids & Mastodons v. 92 Several species of Aepyornis are now recognized, the largest still being Aepyornis maximus. The mounted skeleton of this bird..has a height of just under ten feet. 1959Chambers's Encycl. VIII. 779/2 There are also fossil remains of large, extinct, bird-like animals not found elsewhere, such as the Aepyronis, remnants of whose eggs are strewn over the beaches of the extreme south. |