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Tonsalinae nov. subfam. for Tonsala hildegardae and some other Plotopteridae (1 Viewer)

Fred Ruhe

Well-known member
Netherlands
Gerald Mayr; James L. Goedert, (2018) in press

First record of a tarsometatarsus of Tonsala hildegardae (Plotopteridae) and other avian remains from the late Eocene/early Oligocene of Washington State (USA)

Geobios. in press. doi:10.1016/j.geobios.2017.12.006

Abstract

New bird fossils from the late Eocene/early Oligocene Makah Formation and the Oligocene Pysht Formation on the Olympic Peninsula (Washington State, USA) are described. A partial skeleton from the Pysht Formation includes the first reported tarsometatarsus of Tonsala hildegardae Olson, 1980, a wing-propelled diving bird of the taxon Plotopteridae. It shows that Tonsala had a tarsometatarsus that was morphologically intermediate between that of the late Eocene Phocavis and more derived plotopterids. We introduce the new taxon Tonsalinae nov. subfam. for a clade including all named plotopterids except Phocavis, Plotopterum, and the recently described Stemec. We furthermore describe a partial plotopterid pelvis and a sternum from the Makah Formation. The sternum shows a close resemblance to that of extant Phalacrocoracoidea (cormorants and darters) and may be the earliest North American record of this taxon.

Enjoy,

Fred
 
For Björn:

ETYMOLOGY: Latin, tonsa, oar, and ala, wing, feminine; so named for the paddle-like development of the forelimb.
In honor of Dr. Hildegarde Howard, in recognition of her many contributions to the study of fossil birds, but more particularly of her correct diagnosis of an entirely new family from a single fragment of bone.


Refs:

Hildegarde Howard, 1969
A New Avian Fossil from Kern County, California
The Condor 71: 68-69
pdf: https://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/condor/v071n01/p0068-p0069.pdf

Storrs Lovejoy Olson, 1980
A New Genus of Pinguin-like Pelecaniform Bird from the Oligocene of Wasington (Pelecaniformes: Plotopteridae)
Museum of Natural History of Los Angeles County, Contributions in Science 330: 51-57
pdf: https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/12759/VZ_105_Tonsala.pdf

Fred
 
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