化石发现表明世界上比较大的鹦鹉有3英尺多高

化石发现表明世界上最大的鹦鹉有3英尺多高

About 19 million years ago, the world's largest parrot lived in New Zealand and used its massive beak to crack open food, according to a new study.

根据一项新的研究，大约1900万年前，世界上最大的鹦鹉生活在新西兰，并用其巨大的喙打开食物。

The parrot stood over 3 feet tall and weighed about 15.5 pounds. The fossils were found among others dating to 19 million years ago near St. Bathans in Central Otago, New Zealand. This area is known for its bird fossils dating back to the Miocene period, which ranges between 5.3 and 23 million years ago.
这只鹦鹉身高超过3英尺，体重约15.5磅。这些化石是在距今1900万年前在新西兰奥塔哥中部的圣巴桑附近被发现的。这个地区以其鸟类化石而闻名，这些化石可以追溯到中新世时期，其范围在530万到2300万年前。

A study describing the bird published Tuesday in the journal Biology Letters.

一项关于这种鸟的研究周二发表在“生物学快报”上。

"New Zealand is well known for its giant birds," says Trevor Worthy, study author and Flinders University associate professor. "Not only moa dominated avifaunas, but giant geese and adzebills shared the forest floor, while a giant eagle ruled the skies. But until now, no one has ever found an extinct giant parrot - anywhere."

“新西兰以其巨型鸟类而闻名，”研究作者、弗林德斯大学副教授特雷弗·沃西(Trevor Worthy)说。“不仅MOA占主导地位的鸟类，而且巨大的鹅和adzebill共享森林地面，而一只巨大的鹰统治着天空。但直到现在，还没有人在任何地方发现过已经灭绝的巨型鹦鹉。”

Researchers have named it Heracles inexpectatus in honor of its Herculean size and strength.

研究人员将其命名为Heracles inexpectatus，以纪念其巨大的尺寸和力量。

The parrot had a massive beak, which gives rise to questions about its diet.

鹦鹉有一个巨大的喙，这引起了关于它的饮食的问题。

"Heracles, as the largest parrot ever, no doubt with a massive parrot beak that could crack wide open anything it fancied, may well have dined on more than conventional parrot foods, perhaps even other parrots," said Mike Archer, study author and professor from the University of New South Wales' Palaeontology, Geobiology and Earth Archives Research Centre.

“Heracles ，作为有史以来最大的鹦鹉，无疑有着巨大的鹦鹉喙，可以打开它喜欢的任何东西，很可能吃的不仅仅是传统的鹦鹉食物，甚至是其他鹦鹉，”研究作者、新南威尔士大学古生物学、地质生物学和地球档案研究中心的教授迈克·阿彻说。

"Its rarity in the deposit is something we might expect if it was feeding higher up in the food chain. New Zealand keas, for example, have even developed a taste for sheep since these were introduced by European settlers in 1773."

“如果它在食物链中处于较高的位置，那么它在沉积物中的稀有程度是我们可能会预料到的。例如，自从1773年欧洲殖民者引入新西兰Keas以来，它甚至对绵羊产生了兴趣。”

When Heracles was alive, it would have been surrounded by laurel and palm trees in a subtropical forest.

当赫拉克勒斯活着的时候，它会被亚热带森林中的月桂树和棕榈树包围。

"Undoubtedly, these provided a rich harvest of fruit important in the diet of Heracles and the parrots and pigeons it lived with. But on the forest floor Heracles competed with adzebills and the forerunners of moa," said Suzanne Hand, study author and professor at the University of New South Wales Sydney.

研究作者、新南威尔士大学悉尼分校教授Suzanne Hand说：“毫无疑问，这为Heracles以及与其生活在一起的鹦鹉和鸽子的饮食提供了丰富的水果。但在森林地面上，Heracles与adzebill和moa的先驱展开了竞争。”

It's comparable to the giant dodo pigeon found on the Mascarene Islands east of Madagascar and twice the size of the previously known largest parrot, the New Zealand kakapo.

它与马达加斯加东部马斯卡伦群岛上发现的巨型渡渡鸟相当，是此前已知最大鹦鹉——新西兰鸮鹦鹉的两倍大。

These early parrots were more primitive than ones found in Australia and other areas today.

这些早期的鹦鹉比今天在澳大利亚和其他地区发现的更原始。