Haast's eagle

The Haast's eagle (Hieraaetus moorei) is a species of eagle that once lived in the South Island of New Zealand, commonly accepted to be the Pouakai of Maori legend.[1] The species was the largest eagle known to have existed. Its massive size is explained as an evolutionary response to the size of its prey, the flightless moa, the largest of which could weigh 230 kg (510 lb).[2] Haast's eagle became extinct around 1400, after the moa were hunted to extinction by the first Māori.[3]