Argentavis

Argentavis Temporal range: Late Miocene (Huayquerian) ~9.0–6.8 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Life reconstruction of a grounded individual
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Cathartiformes
Family:	†Teratornithidae
Genus:	†Argentavis Campbell & Tonni 1980
Species:	†A. magnificens
Binomial name
†Argentavis magnificens Campbell & Tonni 1980

Argentavis is an extinct genus of teratornithid known from three sites in the Epecuén and Andalhualá Formations in central and northwestern Argentina dating to the Late Miocene (Huayquerian). The type species, A. magnificens, is sometimes called the giant teratorn. Argentavis was among the largest flying birds to ever exist, holding the record for heaviest flying bird, although it was surpassed in wingspan after the 2014 description of Pelagornis sandersi, which is estimated to have possessed wings some 20% longer than those of Argentavis.^[1][2]