#prophaethon

The 50 million year old fossil site of London Clay preserves impressive fossils of early Eocene birds. Back then, during the PETM, the city of London was near a tropical shoreline, and the land was covered with forests of tropical trees and palm groves. In this hot house world, birds were diversifying rapidly, and lots of strange forms lived in London Clay.

Pulchrapollia: This pretty bird belongs to a lineage related to parrots and had parrot-like feet, but was not a close relative of them. This bird had a corvid-like beak and was likely an omnivore, like jays today.

Archaeodromus: A relative of swifts, potoos and nightjars that hawked after insects, catching them in its huge mouth.

Eotrogon: An early relative of the modern trogons and quetzals. It dove after insects and fruit from its high perch.

Ypresiglaux: Among the earliest known owls, and also one of the smallest. Despite its small stature, it was a fearsome predator of insects and small vertebrates.

Nasidytes: The earliest known loon (or diver). Like its modern relatives, it was an aquatic predator of fish and invertebrates, diving beneath the surface to catch its prey.

Dasornis toliapica: A species of pelagornithid, which were large pseudotoothed soaring seabirds. This small species had a wingspan of "only" three metres.

Nettapterornis: A wading waterfowl related to modern ducks that used its long legs and flat bill to filter food from the water.

Lithornis vulturinus: An ancestral palaeognath that was perfectly capable of long distance flight. It had a flexible beak to help catch its prey.

Charadriisimilis: A small wader that was related to the same group as oystercatchers, sandpipers and plovers. It used its long legs and beak to catch small animals from the sediment.