The Waitaha penguin (Megadyptes waitaha) is an extinct species of New Zealand penguin discovered in November 2008. The new species was discovered by University of Otago and University of Adelaide scientists comparing the foot bones of 500-year-old, 100-year-old and modern specimens of penguins. They were initially believed to have all belonged to the yellow-eyed penguin (Megadyptes antipodes), a species that has been threatened since human settlement. However, the 500-year-old subfossil bones yielded different DNA. According to lead researcher Sanne Boessenkool, Waitaha penguins "were around 10% smaller than the yellow-eyed penguin. The two species are very closely related, but we can't say if they had a yellow crown." "Our findings demonstrate that yellow-eyed penguins on mainland New Zea