Kaiika
Encyclopedia
Kaiika is an extinct genus
of basal penguin
from Early Eocene (Waipawan-Mangaorapan subage) deposits of South Canterbury, New Zealand
. It is known only from a single humerus
. It was found in 1998 by Dr. Phillip Maxwell, a paleontologist and stratigrapher, from the Kauru Formation of the Canterbury Basin, near the Waihao River
. It was first named by R. Ewan Fordyce and Daniel Thomas in 2011
and the type species
is Kaiika maxwelli. Kaiika is one of the oldest penguins known.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of basal penguin
Penguin
Penguins are a group of aquatic, flightless birds living almost exclusively in the southern hemisphere, especially in Antarctica. Highly adapted for life in the water, penguins have countershaded dark and white plumage, and their wings have become flippers...
from Early Eocene (Waipawan-Mangaorapan subage) deposits of South Canterbury, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. It is known only from a single humerus
Humerus
The humerus is a long bone in the arm or forelimb that runs from the shoulder to the elbow....
. It was found in 1998 by Dr. Phillip Maxwell, a paleontologist and stratigrapher, from the Kauru Formation of the Canterbury Basin, near the Waihao River
Waihao River
The Waihao River is a natural watercourse in the Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island.- Characteristics :Its headwaters are in the Hunter Hills, foothills of the Southern Alps, and its catchment area is 550 km². The catchment receives approximately 1,000 mm of rain annually...
. It was first named by R. Ewan Fordyce and Daniel Thomas in 2011
2011 in paleontology
-Lobopods:-Arachnids:-Insects:-Newly named jawless vertebrates:-Newly named acanthodian:-Newly named cartilaginous fishes:-Newly named bony fishes:-Newly named lepospondyls:-Newly named temnospondyls:-Newly named lissamphibians:...
and the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
is Kaiika maxwelli. Kaiika is one of the oldest penguins known.