#columbimorphae

(Type tibiotarsus [fused shin and ankle bones] of Pterocles bosporanus, from Zelenkov, 2023)

Meaning of name: bosporanus = for the Bosporan Kingdom

Age: Pleistocene (Calabrian), between 1.5–1.8 million years ago

Where found: Taurida Cave, Crimea, Ukraine

How much is known: A partial left tibiotarsus (fused shin and ankle bones). Some coracoids (shoulder bones) from the Pleistocene of Italy may conceivably also belong to this species.

Notes: Pterocles is a genus of sandgrouse, a group of pigeon-like birds from Afro-Eurasia. Sandgrouse live in arid habitats and are known for their behavior in which the males use their absorbent belly feathers to transport water to their chicks. P. bosporanus was larger than most extant species of Pterocles other than the black-bellied sandgrouse (P. orientalis), from which it can be distinguished by the shape of its tibiotarsus.

Feral pigeon (Columba livia domestica)