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Gargantuavis philoinos
Topic Started: Apr 20 2014, 06:57 AM (1,740 Views)
Ausar
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Gargantuavis philoinos

Temporal range: Late Cretaceous, 70Ma

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Clade: Ornithothoraces
Clade: Euornithes
Genus: †Gargantuavis
Species: † Gargantuavis philoinos

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Gargantuavis was a genus of prehistoric bird, possibly closely related to Patagopteryx, containing thus far a single species, Gargantuavis philoinos. It lived during the Late Cretaceous in what is now southern France, in the Marnes Rouges Inferieures Formation dated to around 70 mya. A large bird, Gargantuavis was flightless, occupying an ecological niche somewhat similar to that of modern ratites or certain non-avian dinosaurs. It is possible that some of the fossil eggs found in the region, usually attributed to non-avialan dinosaurs, actually belong to this bird. Gargantuavis is known from three or possibly four bones: a synsacrum (the fused vertebrae above the hip), a partial illia (hip bone), and a partial femur (upper leg bone), which was referred to the species based on the fact that it seems to fit well with the hip. A second partial synsacrum similar to the type specimen had been described in 1995, and may also belong to Gargantuavis.

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Partial pelvis

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Femur
Edited by Taipan, Apr 27 2014, 03:45 PM.
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Scalesofanubis
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For this reason,

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I'm kind of suspicious of the idea that gargantuavis and patagopteryx are terribly closely related. They are from similar times and opposite ends of the globe, nearly.

Without other evidence, it seems a lot more likely that the two animals are examples of convergent evolution.
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