By José Carlos Cortés on @quetzalcuetzpalin-art​

PLEASE SUPPORT US ON PATREON. EACH and EVERY DONATION helps to keep this blog running! Any amount, even ONE DOLLAR is APPRECIATED! IF YOU ENJOY THIS CONTENT, please CONSIDER DONATING! 

Name: Eozygodactylus americanus

Status: Extinct

First Described: 2010

Described By: Weidig

Classification:

Dinosauria, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostylia, Ornithothoraces, Euornithes, Ornithuromorpha, Ornithurae, Neornithes, Neognathae, Neoaves, Australaves, Psittacopasserae, Passeriformes, Zygodactylidae

Eozygodactylus is our first Zygodactylid - the group of passerine (songbird) ancestors with zygodactylous feet, showing that passerines evolved from birds that had the feet of things like modern parrots. Eozygodactylus is a relatively recently described one, from the Green River Formation of Wyoming, living about 53 to 48 million years ago, in the Ypresian age of the Eocene of the Paleogene. It is known from many parts of the skeleton, indicating that it was a fairly small, tree dwelling bird with a large skull and a short beak. It also had long legs that would have aided it in tree perching, and its wings were fairly similar to those of modern songbirds. It also had distinctly short claws but long toes, indicating it perched differently than its relative Primozygodactylus. 

Source: