Skip to main content
Log in

New Bird Taxa (Aves: Galliformes, Gruiformes) from the Early Eocene of Mongolia

  • Published:
Paleontological Journal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

New bird taxa are described from the early Eocene Bumban Member of the Tsagaan-Khushuu locality in southern Mongolia. Bumbanortyx transitoria gen. et sp. nov. is a small galliform bird that combines morphological similarity with the fossil families Quercymegapodiidae and Gallinuloididae. The somewhat larger Bumbanipodius magnus gen. et sp. nov. also shows similarities with Quercymegapodiidae, but is close to Argillipes aurorum from the early Eocene of England in the structure of the tarsometatarsus. Bumbanipes aramoides gen. et sp. nov. shows the greatest similarity with modern Aramidae (Gruiformes). Bumbaniralla walbeckornithoides gen. et sp. nov. is described based on a coracoid, morphologically intermediate between those of Walbeckornis and Messelornithidae (stem Gruiformes). The presence of unnamed Messelornithidae in the fauna of the Tsagaan-Khushuu locality is also noted.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 3.

Similar content being viewed by others

REFERENCES

  1. Alvarenga, H.M., Um primitive membro de ordem Galliformes (Aves) do Terciário médio de Bacia de Taubaté, Estado de São Paulo, Brasil, An. Acad. Bras. Ciênc., 1995, vol. 67, pp. 33–44.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Badamgarav, D. and Reshetov, V.Yu., Paleontologiya i stratigrafiya paleogena Zaaltayskoy Gobi (Paleontology and Stratigraphy of the Paleogene of Transaltaic Gobi), Trudy Sovm. Sov.-Mong. Paleontols. Eksped., Vol. 25, Moscow: Nauka, 1985.

  3. Baumel, J.J., King, A.S., Breazile, J.E., Evans, H.E., and Vanden Berge, J.C., Handbook of Avian Anatomy: Nomina Anatomica Avium. Cambridge, Mass.: Nuttall Ornithological Club, 1993.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Bertelli, S., Chiappe, L.M., and Mayr, G., A new Messel rail from the Early Eocene Fur Formation of Denmark (Aves, Messelornithidae), J. Syst. Palaeontol., 2011, vol. 9, pp. 551–562.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Harrison, C.J.O. and Walker, C.A., Birds of the British Lower Eocene, Tert. Res. Spec. Pap., 1977, no. 3, pp. 1–52.

  6. Hesse, A., Die Beschreibung der Messelornithidae (Aves: Gruiformes: Rhynocheti) aus dem Alttertiär Europas und Nordamerikas, Cour. Forsch. Senckenb., 1990, vol. 128, pp. 1–176.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Hood, S.C., Torres, C.R., Norell, M.A. and Clarke, J.A., New fossil birds from the earliest Eocene of Mongolia, Amer. Mus. Novit. 2019, no., 3934, pp. 1–24.

  8. Hwang, S.H., Mayr, G. and Bolortsetseg, M., The earliest record of a galliform bird in Asia, from the late Paleocene–early Eocene of the Gobi desert, Mongolia, J. Vertebr. Paleontol., 2010, vol. 30, pp. 1642–1644.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Kurochkin, E.N. and Dyke, G.J., A large collection of Presbyornis (Aves, Anseriformes, Presbyornithidae) from the late Paleocene and early Eocene of Mongolia, Geol. J., 2010, vol. 45, pp. 375–387.

    Google Scholar 

  10. Kurochkin, E.N. and Dyke, G.J., The first fossil owls (Aves: Strigiformes) from the Paleogene of Asia and a review of the fossil record of Strigiformes, Paleontol. J., 2011, vol. 45, no. 4, pp. 445–458.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Livezey, B.C. and Zusi, R.L., Higher-order phylogeny of modern birds (Theropoda, Aves: Neornithes) based on comparative anatomy. I., Bull. Carn. Mus. Natur. Hist., 2006, no. 37, pp. 1–544.

  12. Lopatin, A.V., Early Paleogene insectivore mammals of Asia and establishment of the major groups of Insectivora, Paleontol. J., 2006, vol. 40. Suppl. 3, pp. 205–405.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Mayr, G., A new basal galliform bird from the middle Eocene of Messel (Hessen, Germany), Senckenb. Leth., 2000, vol. 80, pp. 45–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Mayr, G., Phylogenetic relationships of the early Tertiary Messel rails (Aves, Messelornithidae), Senckenb. Leth., 2004, vol. 84, pp. 317–322.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Mayr, G., The birds from the Palaeocene fissure filling of Walbeck (Germany), J. Vertebr. Paleontol., 2007, vol. 27, pp. 394–408.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Mayr, G., Paleogene fossil birds, Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, 2009.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  17. Mayr, G., Variations in the hypotarsus morphology of birds and their evolutionary significance, Acta Zool., 2016, vol. 97, pp. 196–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Mayr, G., Avian evolution. The fossil record of birds and its paleobiological significance. Chichester, West Sussex: J. Wiley & Sons, 2017.

    Google Scholar 

  19. Mayr, G. and Smith, T., A diverse bird assemblage from the Ypresian of Belgium furthers knowledge of early Eocene avifaunas of the North Sea Basin, N. Jb. Geol. Paläontol. Abh., 2019, vol. 291, pp. 253–281.

    Google Scholar 

  20. Mayr, G. and Weidig, I., The early Eocene bird Gallinuloides wyomingensis—a stem group representative of Galliformes, Acta Palaeontol. Pol., 2004, vol. 49, pp. 211–217.

    Google Scholar 

  21. Mourer-Chauviré, C., The Galliformes (Aves) from the Phosphorites du Quercy (France): systematics and biostratigraphy, Natur. Hist. Mus. Los Angeles Cty Sci. Ser., 1992, no. 36, pp. 67–95.

  22. Mourer-Chauviré, C., The Messelornithidae (Aves: Gruiformes) from the Paleogene of France, Cour. Forsch. Senckenb., 1995, vol. 181, pp. 95–105.

    Google Scholar 

  23. Mourer-Chauviré, C., Pickford, M. and Senut, B., Stem group galliform and stem group psittaciform birds (Aves, Galliformes, Paraortygidae, and Psittaciformes, family incertae sedis) from the Middle Eocene of Namibia, J. Ornithol., 2015, vol. 156, pp. 275–286.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Stidham, T.A., Townsend, K.E.B. and Holroyd, P.A., Evidence for wide dispersal in a stem galliform clade from a new small-sized middle Eocene pangalliform (Aves: Paraortygidae) from the Uinta Basin of Utah (USA), Diversity., 2020, vol. 12: 90. https://doi.org/10.3390/d12030090

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Wang, M., Mayr, G., Zhang, J., and Zhou, Z., Two new skeletons of the enigmatic, rail-like avian taxon Songzia Hou, 1990 (Songziidae) from the early Eocene of China, Alcheringa, 2012, vol. 36, pp. 487–499.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Zelenkov, N.V., A swan-sized anseriform bird from the late Paleocene of Mongolia, J. Vertebr. Paleontol., 2018, vol. 38: e1531879.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Zelenkov, N.V., Revision of Paleocene–Eocene Mongolian Presbyornithidae (Aves: Anseriformes), Paleontol. J., 2021, vol. 55, no. 3, pp. 83–91.

  28. Zelenkov, N.V., Kurochkin, E.N., Class Aves, Iskopaemye pozvonochnye Rossii i sopredel’nyh stran. Iskopaemye reptilii i ptitsy. Chast’ 2 (Fossil vertebrates of Russia and neighbouring countries. Fossil reptiles and birds. Part 2), Kurochkin, E.N., Lopatin, A.V., Zelenkov, N.V., eds., Moscow: GEOS, 2015, p. 86–290.

    Google Scholar 

  29. Zelenkov, N.V. and Panteleyev, A.V., A small stem-galliform bird (Aves: Paraortygidae) from the Eocene of Uzbekistan, C.R. Palevol., 2019, vol. 18, pp. 517–523.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The author thanks G. Mayr (Frankfurt am Main), M. Florence (Washington), R. Allain (Paris) and B. Marandat (Montpellier) for providing the opportunity to study materials on fossil birds, as well as N.V. Martynovich (Kaliningrad) for reviewing the article.

Funding

This work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research grant number 20-04-00975.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to N. V. Zelenkov.

Additional information

Translated by D. Ponomarenko

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Zelenkov, N.V. New Bird Taxa (Aves: Galliformes, Gruiformes) from the Early Eocene of Mongolia. Paleontol. J. 55, 438–446 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0031030121040158

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S0031030121040158

Keywords:

Navigation