Brontornis
Name:
Brontornis
(Thunder bird).
Phonetic: Bron-tor-niss.
Named By: Francisco P. Moreno & Alcides
Mercerat - 1891.
Synonyms: Brontornis platyonyx,
Rostrornis floweri.
Classification: Chordata, Aves, Cariamae,
Phorusrhacidae, Brontornithinae.
Species: B. burmeisteri (type).
Diet: Carnivore.
Size: Up to 2.8 metres tall.
Known locations: Argentina, Santa Cruz Province.
Time period: Miocene.
Fossil representation: Several specimens, usually
of the legs and feet, but some vertebrae and skull material are
also known.
Brontornis
was easily one of the largest of the known South American ‘terror
birds’, and as a member of the Brontornithinae it is
noted as being
one of the most robust in build. Whereas some terror birds could use
their speed to run down prey, Brontornis would
have been more suited
to ambush tactics against larger prey. This would mean staying
amongst trees and tall vegetation to hide its profile while prey
wandered close enough for a strike.
The
heavy build of Brontornis would have been key to
its hunting strategy,
essentially relying upon brute force to bring its prey down. One
reason for this is that without speed to keep pace with its prey it
would need to take it down quick before the prey had time to escape.
Another is that as a larger bird it would need to eat larger and more
powerful prey items to have enough food to survive. This meant a
focus upon prey that could have withstood weaker blows necessitating
the requirement for the ability to inflict stronger impacts.
Brontornis
placement within the Phorusrhacidae has been questioned on the grounds
of its similarities with anseriform birds, more specifically like the
large flightless birds of Australia such as Dromornis
and Bullockornis.
However this similarity may actually be a simple case of convergent
evolution as studies of the vertebra have since suggested that
Brontornis is indeed more like the other
phorusrhacids. This also
helps to tie in South America’s geographic isolation from the rest of
the world during the Miocene.
Further reading
- Catalogue des Oiseaux Fossiles de la Republique Argentine conserves
au Musee de la Plata. - Anales del Museo de la Plata 1:1-71 - F. P.
Moreno & A. Mercerat - 1891.
- Systematic revision of the Phorusrhacidae (Aves: Ralliformes) -
Pap�is Avulsos de Zoologia 43 (4): 55–91 - H. M. F. Alvarenga &
e. H�fling - 2003.
- Brontornis burmeisteri Moreno & Mercerat,
un Anseriformes
(Aves) gigante del Mioceno Medio de Patagonia, Argentina. - Revista del
Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales, n.s. 9, 15-25 - F. Agnolin -
2007.
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