You may have thought Big Bird was unrealistically gigantic, but he’s still not the largest bird to ever walk the Earth. That honor goes to elephant birds, which stood 10 feet tall and roamed ...

History has not been kind to the elephant bird of Madagascar. Standing nearly 10 feet tall and weighing up to 1,000 pounds — or so researchers believed — this flightless cousin of the ostrich went ...

Madagascar is home to some of the world’s most unique and remarkable species. However, one of its most awe-inspiring residents, the elephant bird, vanished from the planet roughly 1,000 years ago.

This is Episode Two of a four-part Fascination on really big birds. You can listen to Episode One here. Flora Lichtman (tape): For people who’ve never heard of an elephant bird, what do they need to ...