Palaeospheniscus bergi
| Palaeospheniscus bergi | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Sphenisciformes |
| Family: | Spheniscidae |
| Genus: | †Palaeospheniscus |
| Species: | †P. bergi |
| Binomial name | |
| †Palaeospheniscus bergi Moreno & Mercerat 1891 | |
| Synonyms | |
| See text | |
Palaeospheniscus bergi is a species of the extinct penguin genus Palaeospheniscus.[1] It stood about 60 to 75 centimetres (24 to 30 in) high in life, or somewhat smaller on average than the extant African penguin.
Etymology
[edit]The species is named for Carlos Berg, a member of the La Plata Museum of Natural Sciences staff at the time when Moreno worked there.
Description
[edit]Many bones referrable to this species have been recovered from the Early to Middle Miocene Gaiman and Puerto Madryn Formations and the El Foyel Group.[1] Known localities are Trelew in Chubut Province and Puerto San Julián in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina.
Some recent researchers have considered Palaeospheniscus gracilis to be a synonym for this species.[2]
Taxonomy
[edit]Bones of this species were described as no less than 6 "species" (including the correct one) from 3 "genera" by Florentino Ameghino in a single publication. The synonyms are as follows:
- Palaeospheniscus bergii (lapsus) Ameghino, 1891
- Paraspheniscus bergi Ameghino, 1905
- Palaeospheniscus planus Ameghino, 1905
- Palaeospheniscus rothi Ameghino, 1905
- Pseudospheniscus interplanus Ameghino, 1905
- Pseudospheniscus planus Ameghino, 1905
- Pseudospheniscus concavus Ameghino, 1905
- Pseudospheniscus convexus Ameghino, 1905
Either Pseudospheniscus interplanus or P. planus, as well as either Pseudospheniscus concavus or P. convexus, are a lapsus too.
References
[edit]
- ^ a b Palaeospheniscus bergi at Fossilworks.org
- ^ Dyke, Gareth; Kaiser, Gary, eds. (2011). Living Dinosaurs: The Evolutionary History of Modern Birds. Oxford, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. p. 162. ISBN 978-0-470-65666-2.
Further reading
[edit]- Ameghino, Florentino (1905): Enumeracion de los impennes fósiles de Patagonia y de la Isla Seymour. An. Mus. Nac. Buenos Aires 3(6): 97-167, 4 figures, 8 plates.
- Moreno, Francisco "Perito" & Mercerat, A. (1891): Catálogo de los pájaros fósiles de la República Argentina conservados en el Museo de La Plata. Anales del Museo de La Plata 1: 7-71, 21 plates.
- Simpson, George Gaylord (1946): Fossil penguins. Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist. 87: 7-99. PDF fulltext
- Simpson, George Gaylord (1971): Conspectus of Patagonian fossil penguins. American Museum Novitates 2488: 1-37. PDF fulltext