 However, there are also several species not seen in modern-day New Zealand, such as a mekosuchine crocodile up to 3 metres in length and pleurodire and meiolaniid turtles.This suggests that New Zealand's herpetofauna was much richer in this epoch, probably because its climate was considerably warmer than today.The vast majority of the bones excavated from St Bathans are those of freshwater fish such as the ancient relatives of today's bullies, galaxiids, and the extinct New Zealand grayling.