WASHINGTON—Scientists have unearthed in New Zealand fossil bones of what might be the heavyweight champion of the penguin world, a bird nearly 6 feet tall that thrived 55 to 60 million years ago, relatively soon after the demise of the dinosaurs.
Researchers said on Tuesday the ancient penguin, called Kumimanu biceae, weighed nearly 225 pounds, and was much bigger than the largest of these flightless seabirds alive today, the emperor penguin, which grows to about 4-1/4 feet and about 90 pounds.
