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Archaeologists are used to discovering the weird and wonderful when examining Ancient Egypt, but it is unusual to find evidence of an extinct animal. However, that is just what they found
when looking into a pharaoh's tomb. The sketchings of six geese were first discovered 150 years ago in 1871 in the Meidum Pyramid south of Cairo, but it has taken until now to determine
two of the geese are a different species compared to what is about today. Anthony Romilio, an evolutionary biologist from the University of Queensland in Australia, examined the six geese,
which were painted 4,600 years ago. Previous researchers believed the strange colourings on two of the geese, which, were down to "artistic licence". Four of the geese are known
species, the greater white-fronted goose, and the Greylag, which are still found across Europe and the northern hemisphere. But Dr Romilo used a method known as the Tobias criteria to give a
new perspective on two of the etchings. These two geese have a distinctive red pattern on their chest at the base of their neck, which is different to the red-breasted goose which still
lives today. Although the species are similar, there are distinct differences as seen in the Meidum tomb. Dr Romilo said: “I applied the Tobias criteria to the goose, along with other types
of geese in the fresco. "This is a highly effective method in identifying species – using quantitative measurements of key bird features – and greatly strengthens the value of the
information to zoological and ecological science." READ MORE: STONEHENGE BREAKTHROUGH: MONUMENT'S 'TRUE PURPOSE’ WAS DEFENCE "From a zoological perspective, the Egyptian
artwork is the only documentation of this distinctively patterned goose, which appears now to be globally extinct." Dr Romilo added that many species of unknown birds likely thrived in
Egypt 4,600 years ago, when the climate was different and it was more green with an abundance of water, unlike the desert of today. He said: “Its ancient culture emerged when the Sahara was
green and covered with grasslands, lakes and woodlands, teeming with diverse animals, many of which were depicted in tombs and temples. “So far, science has confirmed the identity of
relatively few of these species.”