In Depth Along with Microraptor, the discovery of Yanornis was born out of the Archaeoraptor scandal. Named after the Yan Dynasty, Yanornis features several features that are common to modern birds including the absence of the prefrontal bone, a bone that separates the lacrimal bone in front of the eye from the frontal bone that … Read more
In Depth Psittacopes is an early genus of parrot that lived during the Eocene. Fossil remains of Psittacopes are known from England and Germany, suggesting that Psittacopes may have been quite widespread across Western Europe. Further Reading - Eocene parrots from Messel. (Hessen, Germany) and the London Clay of Walton-on-the-Naze (Essex, England), Senckenbergiana Lethaia 78: … Read more
In Depth Jamna is a genus of passeriform bird that lived in Eastern Europe during the Oligocene. Further Reading - A new passerine bird from the early Oligocene of Poland. - Journal of Ornithology 152 (4): 1045–1053. - Zbigniew M. Bocheński, Teresa Tomek, Małgorzata Bujoczek & Krzysztof Wertz - 2011.
In Depth Ichthyornis - A brief history of the discovery and classification. Ever since its first description in 1872, Ichthyornis has been one of the most important prehistoric birds known to us, but one that has been frequently mired in controversy. The very first specimen of Ichthyornis was first recovered in 1870 by Benjamin Franklin … Read more
In Depth Yixianornis clearly differs from most other early Cretaceous birds in that the wings are rounded instead of pointed. The tail of Yixianornis is also clearly formed into a pygostyle which allowed for a strong and flexible attachment for tail feathers, which could be fanned out in flight, and then packed tight when resting. … Read more
In Depth While Llallawavis was not the largest phorusrhacid (a.k.a. terror bird) ever to live, it was at the time of the genus description the most completely preserved example of one. So complete was the holotype individual of Llallawavis, that even preserved parts of the trachea, and voice box were recovered, soft tissue areas that … Read more
In Depth Further Reading – The Great Predatory Birds of the Pleistocene of Cuba. – Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology number 27, pp. 169-187. – Oscar Arredondo – 1982. – Los Strigiformes f�siles del pleistoceno cubano. – Bolet�n de la Sociedad Venezolana de Ciencias Naturales 140, 33-55. – Oscar Arredondo – 1982.
In Depth Although the name actually means ‘ox bird’, Bullockornis is better known in popular culture as the ‘Demon duck of doom’. This is in part because Bullockornis is thought to be more closely related to ducks and geese than any other group of birds. Although Bullockornis was without doubt a large bird, it was … Read more
In Depth Kumimanu is a genus of penguin that lived in New Zealand during the Paleocene period. With a minimum height of one hundred and sixty centimetres, Kumimanu was huge for a penguin. This makes Kumimanu at least fifty centimetres taller than the emperor penguin (Aptenodytes forsteri) which is the largest penguin alive today. Like … Read more
In Depth Patagornis was the first of the Patagornithinae sub group of the phorusrhacid ‘terror birds’, and as such it was more intermediate in size. This would mean that Patagornis had no way near the size and strength of the larger members of the group, but they would have been much faster and more agile. … Read more