Messelornis

Messelornis
Temporal range: Paleocene - Early Eocene
Fossil
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Gruiformes
Family: †Messelornithidae
Genus: †Messelornis
Hesse, 1988
Species

M. cristata Hesse, 1988
M. nearctica Hesse, 1992
M. russelli Mourer-Chaviré, 1995[1]

Messelornis, also known as the Messel rail, is an extinct genus of gruiform bird, closely related to modern rails. It is the most abundant bird from the Messel Lagerstätte, representing roughly half of all Messel bird fossils with more than 500 specimens known.[2][3] The fossil record are from the Paleocene to the early Eocene.[1]

Messelornis was a generalized terrestrial bird, with a short beak, long legs, and a long tail.[3] It was probably not an especially adept flier. It was omnivorous and had a diet including seeds, fruits, and fish.[2] The name of the type species, M. cristata, refers to the fact that it was initially interpreted as having a comb-like crest, but the existence of this crest has been disputed.[3] One of its feathers had an iridescent coloration, but no chemical analysis has been done yet.[4]

Messelornis was originally interpreted as closely related to the sunbittern, which was also classified as a member of the Gruiformes at the time. However, the sunbittern has since been classified in a separate order, Eurypygiformes, while Messelornis has remained a member of the Gruiformes and is now interpreted as a relative of rails.[5]

  1. ^ a b Mourer-Chaviré C. (1995) The Messelornithidae (Aves: Gruiformes) from the Paleogene of France. - Cour. Forsch.-Inst. Senckenberg, 181: 95-105
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Morlo2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Mayr2009 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Roy, Arindam; Pittman, Michael; Saitta, Evan T.; Kaye, Thomas G.; Xu, Xing (2020). "Recent advances in amniote palaeocolour reconstruction and a framework for future research". Biological Reviews. 95 (1): 22–50. doi:10.1111/brv.12552. PMC 7004074. PMID 31538399.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Mayr2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).