Diogenornis
| Diogenornis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Infraclass: | Palaeognathae |
| Order: | Casuariiformes |
| Genus: | †Diogenornis Alvarenga1983 |
| Type species | |
| †Diogenornis fragilis Alvarenga 1983
| |
Diogenornisis an extinctgenusofratites,that lived during theEarly Eocene(ItaboraiantoCasamayoranin theSALMA classification).[1]It was described in 1983 by Brazilian scientist Herculano Marcos Ferraz de Alvarenga based on fossils found in theItaboraí Formationin southeasternBrazil.[2]Thetype speciesisD. fragilis.It grew to about two thirds the size of the moderngreater rhea,at about 90 centimetres (3.0 ft) of height.[3]
Description
[edit]While initially considered a member of the familyOpisthodactylidae,further examination of the fossil remains showed that it was more similar to the modernrhea.According toGerald Mayr,Diogenornisis best considered a stem-group member of theRheidae.[3]However, recent phylogenetic studies have shown a closer affiliation to Australian ratites, thecassowariesandemus.This may reevaluate the origins and distribution of this clade, expanding their range to the South American Paleocene, well before the appearance ofEmuarius.[4]Recent findings nonetheless show that it co-existed with early rheas, meaning the ratite diversity of South America was very high during thePaleogene.[5]
Diogenornispossesses a rather narrow beak, similar to that oftinamous,lithornithidsandcassowaries,as well as rather large wings.[2]These traits, both rather unspecialised, seem to suggest a then recent development from a flying ancestor.[4]
References
[edit]- ^DiogenornisatFossilworks.org
- ^abAlvarenga, H.M.F. (1983) Uma ave ratitae do Paleoceno Brasileiro: bacia calcária de Itaboraí, Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.Boletim do Museu Nacional, Nova Série, Geologia41: 1–8
- ^abMayr, G. (2009). Paleogene fossil birds. Springer.
- ^abH. Alvarenga, Diogenornis fragilis Alvarenga, 1985, restudied: a South American ratite closely related to Casuariidae, 2010
- ^Agnolin et al, "Unexpected diversity of ratites (Aves, Palaeognathae) in the early Cenozoic of South America: palaeobiogeographical implications Article in Alcheringa"An Australasian Journal of PalaeontologyJuly 2016 DOI: 10.1080/03115518.2016.1184898
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