#vegavis

It's been online for a while, but a new paper I'm on is out in final format today! Led by Abi Crane, we examined the lower jaw anatomy of three fossil birds: Asteriornis, Vegavis, and the pelagornithid Dasornis. These birds have been considered members of Galloanserae (the water- and landfowl clade), but for all three cases this classification has not gone unquestioned. We find that the lower jaw structure of Asteriornis is consistent with galloanseran affinities, whereas those of Vegavis and Dasornis lack clear galloanseran traits. So what type of birds are the latter two? Maybe future research will tell…

And for those who appreciate really deep cuts in Mesozoic theropod paleontology, we also speculate that the purported "Cretaceous parrot" jaw from the Lance Formation may belong to an Asteriornis-like bird!

Fossil of oldest known modern bird discovered in Antarctica

A near complete skull fossil found in Antarctica has revealed the oldest known modern bird — a mallard duck-size creature related to the waterfowl that live by lakes and oceans today, a new study has found. The 68 million-year-old fossil belongs to an extinct species of bird known as Vegavis iaai that lived at the end of the Cretaceous period, when Tyrannosaurus rex dominated North America and just before a city-size asteroid hit Earth, dooming the dinosaurs to extinction. Birds that lived among the dinosaurs were barely recognizable when compared with today’s bird species. Many sported bizarre features such as toothed beaks and long, bony tails. Vegavis, however, would have been ducklike in size and similar ecologically to aquatic bird species such as loons, according to the lead author of the study published in the journal Nature...

All the dinosaurs died out at the end of the Cretaceous during the K/Pg extinction event 66 million years ago. All of them? No! One group of dinosaurs managed to survive the event and are still around today. Neornithes, or Crown birds. They evolved during the end of the Cretaceous period, and by coincidence, had traits tohelp them survive the cataclysm. Here's a few of these early feathered friends.

Teviornis, a large wading Presbyornithid (flamingo-duck) from Mongolia

"Styginetta", a smaller Presbyornithid (flamingo duck) known from Western North America

Vegavis, a strange, small diving seabird related to ducks and geese, known from Antarctica

Am I participating in 2 different paleo november challenged? Yes, yes I am. But we start with the Fossil Novembirb with a cute Vegavis!

As always, you can get all these cute stuff in my redbubble

I’ve spent way to many hours researching this bird now, and still know way too little, but here’s my take on Vegavis. With feet propelled swimming and high metabolism I’m doubtful of them mainly predating on fish. I’ve instead gone with a bird living in more shallow waters of cold climate with a beak akin to an eider for eating mollusks and maybe crustaceans or other bottom-fauna.

I love feet-propelled divers across the board, and I really hope I get to learn more about this birb and it’s habit in the future!

Sources and stuff under the cut.