Eric Hill, age 10, of Marquette, Mich., for his question:

WHAT WAS AN ELEPHANT BIRD?

The elephant bird is any one of several kinds of giant birds that once lived in Madagascar. The elephant birds are now all extinct.

The largest elephant bird was about 10 feet high and weighed about 1,000 pounds. These giant birds could not fly.

Bones of the extinct birds have been found by scientists, so we know that they did indeed exist at one time. Huge eggs that could hold two gallons have been found along with the birds, bones. The eggs are the largest known single cells in the animal kingdom.

Some people think the legends of the giant bird called the roc were based on knowledge of elephant birds.

The roc was actually a mythical bird of enormous size, known from the stories in the "Arabian Nights." It resembled an eagle, but was large enough to seize an elephant in its talons.

In "Arabian Nights," Sinbad the Sailor tells of seeing the roc's gigantic eggs.