Ancient DNA provides new insights into the evolutionary history of New Zealand's extinct giant eagle

Prior to human settlement 700 years ago New Zealand had no terrestrial mammals - apart from three species of bats instead, approximately 250 avian species dominated the ecosystem. At the top of the food chain was the extinct Haast's eagle, Harpagornis moorei. H. moorei ( 10 - 15 kg; 2 - 3 m wingspan) was 30% - 40% heavier than the largest extant eagle ( the harpy eagle, Harpia harpyja), and hunted moa up to 15 times its weight. In a dramatic example of morphological plasticity and rapid size increase, we show that the H. moorei was very closely related to one of the world's smallest extant eagles, which is one- tenth its mass. This spectacular evolutionary change illustrates the potential speed of size alteration within lineages of vertebrates, especially in island ecosystems.