Paleontologists have unearthed a 2.9-centimeter fossil foot bone believed to belong to a bowerbird at the Miocene site of St Bassans in Aotearoa, New Zealand.
Recreating the life of the St. Bassin’s bowerbird (Aeviperditus gracilis). Image credit: Sasha Votyakova / Te Papa / CC BY 4.0.
The newly identified species existed in New Zealand during the Miocene epoch, approximately 19 to 14 million years ago, well away from its close relatives in Australia and New Guinea.
“This finding offers significant and unique insight into the biological history of Aotearoa’s avian life,” stated Dr. Nick Lawrence, director of the Otago Institute of Paleogenetics.
“For many around the globe, bowerbirds gained fame from Sir David Attenborough’s documentaries featuring their intricate courtship rituals. Males construct arched structures called bowers, adorned with colorful items such as sticks and occasionally fruit, leaves, or even plastic, to attract a mate.”
Known as Aeviperditus gracilis or St. Bassin’s bowerbird, this new bird species was considerably smaller than its modern counterparts.
“It weighs only 33g, much lighter than both existing and extinct bowerbird species, which typically range from 96 to 265g,” Dr. Lawrence explained.
“Its leg bones closely resemble those of Avenue Bower builders, including the brightly colored Flame Bowerbird and Satin Bowerbird.”
“If this bird is indeed a relative of bowerbirds, it could represent an entirely new lineage of songbirds for Aotearoa,” suggested Dr. Elizabeth Steele, a researcher at the University of Cambridge.
“This is particularly crucial given our limited understanding of the region’s ancient songbird fossil record.”
“St Bathan’s Bowerbird signifies the latest lineage of songbirds with a long evolutionary history in Aotearoa, with the earliest representatives of groups like the Uia, Koukako, Tieke, Piopio, and Mohua found here.”
“All these species likely evolved rapidly and dispersed from Australia to New Zealand.”
“Like many of St. Bathans’ unique species, this bird has no surviving descendants in Aotearoa.”
“The bowerbird seems to have been particularly vulnerable to the cooling temperatures preceding the Ice Age and the resulting shifts in forest composition and distribution, contributing to its extinction,” Dr. Lawrence noted.
An article detailing the discovery of Aeviperditus gracilis was published on October 7, 2025, in Historical Biology, International Journal of Paleontology.
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Elizabeth M. Steele et al. Possible early Miocene bowerbirds of New Zealand. Historical Biology, published online October 7, 2025. doi: 10.1080/08912963.2025.2568099
Source: www.sci.news
