Flightless bird more species of flightless birds (including the kiwi, several species of penguins, the takahe, the weka, the moa, and several other extinct species) than any other such location. One reason is that until the arrival of humans roughly a thousand years ago, there were no large land predators in New Zealand; the main predators of flightless birds were larger birds. Ratites belong to the superorder Palaeognathae birds, which include the volant tinamou, and are believed to have evolved flightlessness independently multiple times within their own group. Some birds evolved flightlessness in response to the absence of predators, for example on
The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals is an encyclopedia of prehistoric and extinct animals which had a vertebrate. The "Encyclopedia" is published by Chartwell Books. Early Tetrapods Lepospondyls Early Reptiles Turtles, Tortoises, and Terrapins Semi-Aquatic and Marine Reptiles Marine Reptiles Early Diapsids Snakes and Lizards Early Ruling Reptiles Crocodiles Flying Reptiles Carnivorous Dinosaurs Early Herbivorous Dinosaurs Long-necked Browsing Dinosaurs Fabrosaurs, Heterodontosaurs, and Pachycephalosaurs Hypsilophodonts Iguanodonts Duckbilled Dinosaurs Armored Dinosaurs Horned Dinosaurs Early and Flightless Birds Water and Land Birds Pelycosaurs Theraspids Primitive Mammals Marsupials Glyptodonts, Sloths, Armadillos, and