In 2019 Ranfurly man Michael Johnston was taking his dogs for a swim on a hot day when he discovered the first fossilised moa footprints found in the South Island.
In 2023 a team of research scientists from New Zealand and Australia decided they were 3.6 million years old and left by a member of the Emeidae family — most likely of the Pachyornis genus.
That made it likely it was a relative of the heavy-footed moa, a variety noted for being particularly bottomheavy with unusually short and thick legs. No featherweight, the moa was thought to weigh abut 158kg.
Tu ¯hura Otago Museum natural sciences collection curator Kane Fleury said many moa remains were less than 10,000 years old, so the Kyeburn prints offered a rare insight into moa evolution.
A lot of luck was involved in the fossilisation of footprints — conditions had to be absolutely perfect for these tracks to be preserved, and they had to be just right again to expose the fossils without destroying them, he said.
On Sunday about 75 people, including Mr Johnston and Mr Fleury, gathered at Kyeburn, about 15km from Ranfurly, to celebrate the marking of the historic event.
Another first on the day was afternoon tea for those who gathered, being hosted by the Kyeburn Public Library Committee.
