Skip to main content

Pelagornis chilensis

Pelagornis chilensis is a large, now extinct bird that once soared the coastal skies. It is believed that they may be a precursor to modern pelicans and stocks. Pelagornis chilensis is one of a handful of species within the genus, and has been the one most in the public eye. Literally last week news reports started to come out about a gigantic prehistoric bird from Chile with a confirmed wingspan of over 17ft. While spans of birds like Argentavis magnificens have been estimated as being larger, due to flight feather length, P. chilensis is confirmed to have longer wing bones.

Image by Carlos Anzures (Source)
Image by Carlos Anzures (Source)
The bird lived between 5 and 10 million years ago, and has a remarkable complete skeleton. Because birds have such fragile frames in order to maintain flight, wing bones were often crushed. This skeleton is 70% complete. It is in fact the most complete fossil bird wing ever excavated.

Another awesome piece of information about P. chilensis? It had teeth.Well, kinda of. P. chilensis had bony psuedoteeth, which probably aided in grabbing and holding on to slippery seafood like squid and fish.

The skeleton of chilensis will remain in Chile for study and display, while a
replica is currently being prepared for display in Frankfurt, Germany. A full copy of the P. chilensis report is in the September issue of the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.



Labels:

Comments

  1. AnonymousAugust 23, 2011 at 3:32 PM

    I swear I saw one in my back garden about two years ago.

    Gemma Bryant, South Queensferry

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a...
59 comments
Read more

Halloween Crab

Gecarcinus quadratus The Halloween Crab goes by many names, including the Red Land Crab, Whitespot Crab, and Moon Crab. I personally like Halloween Crab though, since it really reflects the interesting colors. They have black carapaces, orange-red legs, and purple claws! Halloween Crabs live in the Pacific coast mangroves and forests of Central and South America. They actually live in the forests as adults, and return to the ocean in order to reproduce. Did you know that they live as far away as 18 miles (30km)  from water? Not where you normally think Crabs to be! While living in the forest, the Crabs forage nocturnally for different plant matter, including leaves and sapling. They also dig long burrows into the ground for protection. These burrows can measure nearly 5 ft long! Halloween Crabs are sometimes kept in captivity, and can be very tricky pets due to their excellent climbing skills. IUCN Status :  Not Listed ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!
18 comments
Read more