Strigogyps sapea
Encyclopedia
Strigogyps is an extinct genus
of prehistoric
bird
from the Middle Eocene to Early Oligocene of France
and Germany
. It was probably around the size of a large chicken
or a guan
, weighing not quite 1 kilogram. Apparently, as indicated by the ratio of lengths of wing to leg bones, S. sapea was flightless. Its legs were not adapted to running, so it seems to have had a walking lifestyle similar to trumpeter
s, but probably was more carnivorous, feeding on small reptile
s, possibly mammals or fish caught in shallow water, or carrion.
The type species of Strigogyps is S. dubius, which was described by Gaillard in 1908. It was initially placed in the owl order
Strigiformes and considered to be a Sophiornithid
. S. dubius is based on a single tibiotarsus
from the Late Eocene to Early Oligocene Quercy
phosphorite
s of France. This tibiotarsus was destroyed in World War II
during the bombing of Munich
, but casts remain. In 1939, Gaillard described a second species of Strigogyps, S. minor, based on a humerus
, two coracoids and two carpometacarpi also from Quercy. In 1981, Mourer-Chauviré redescribed S. minor as Ameghinornis minor, the only member of the new Phorusrhacid
subfamily, Ameghinornithinae. Ameghinornis was later placed in its own family, ameghinornithidae. In 1987, Peters named another monospecific genus of Ameghinornithid, Aenigmavis sapea, based on a nearly complete skeleton from the Middle Eocene Messel pit
of Germany
. Mayr (2005) found Aenigmavis to be a species of Strigogyps, S. sapea, and found Ameghinornis to be synonymous with S. dubius, as they both came from Quercy, and are almost identical except for coracoids and carpometacarpi of Ameghinornis, which Mayr found to be unlike other Ameghinornithids, and probably from an Idiornithid.
In 1935, Lambrecht described a new New World vulture
, Eocathartes robustus, and a hornbill
, Geiseloceros robustus, from the Middle Eocene (Lutetian
) of the Geisel Valley of Germany. Each as based on a single specimen, and they were found very close together. Mayr (2007) found them to be synonymous and a species of Strigogyps, S. robustus.
Recent studies (Alvarenga & Höfling 2003, Mayr 2005) have found Strigogyps to be a more basal member of Cariamae, and not particularly close to Phorusrhachids. Salmila robusta, another bird from Messel was found to be more basal than Strigogyps, and the clade
composed of Salmila and Cariamae to be the sister taxon to Psophiidae within a monophyletic Gruiformes
.
Fragmentary remains from the Palaeocene and/or Eocene of England
and North America
have also been suggested to be Phorusrhachids, but, like Strigogyps, they probably aren't.
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 prehistoric
Fossil birds
Birds are generally believed to have evolved from certain feathered theropod dinosaurs, and there is no real dividing line between birds and dinosaurs, except of course that some of the former survived the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event while the latter did not. For the purposes of this...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
from the Middle Eocene to Early Oligocene of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It was probably around the size of a large chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
or a guan
Guan (bird)
The guans are a number of bird genera which make up the largest group in the family Cracidae. They are found mainly in northern South America, southern Central America, and a few adjacent Caribbean islands...
, weighing not quite 1 kilogram. Apparently, as indicated by the ratio of lengths of wing to leg bones, S. sapea was flightless. Its legs were not adapted to running, so it seems to have had a walking lifestyle similar to trumpeter
Trumpeter (bird)
The trumpeters are a family of birds restricted to the humid forests of the Amazon and Guiana Shield in South America. They are named for the trumpeting or cackling threat call of the males. The three species resemble chickens in size; they measure 45 to 52 centimetres long and weigh 1 to 1.5...
s, but probably was more carnivorous, feeding on small reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
s, possibly mammals or fish caught in shallow water, or carrion.
The type species of Strigogyps is S. dubius, which was described by Gaillard in 1908. It was initially placed in the owl order
Order (biology)
In scientific classification used in biology, the order is# a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, family, genus, and species, with order fitting in between class and family...
Strigiformes and considered to be a Sophiornithid
Sophiornithidae
Sophiornithidae , was a family of chicken-sized predatory birds that lived from the Paleocene to the Eocene periods of the Cenozoic, and were found primarily in Europe, and are thought to be primitive owls...
. S. dubius is based on a single tibiotarsus
Tibiotarsus
The tibiotarsus is the large bone between the femur and the tarsometatarsus in the leg of a bird. It is the fusion of the proximal part of the tarsus with the tibia.A similar structure also occurred in the Mesozoic Heterodontosauridae...
from the Late Eocene to Early Oligocene Quercy
Quercy
Quercy is a former province of France located in the country's southwest, bounded on the north by Limousin, on the west by Périgord and Agenais, on the south by Gascony and Languedoc, and on the east by Rouergue and Auvergne....
phosphorite
Phosphorite
Phosphorite, phosphate rock or rock phosphate is a non-detrital sedimentary rock which contains high amounts of phosphate bearing minerals. The phosphate content of phosphorite is at least 15 to 20% which is a large enrichment over the typical sedimentary rock content of less than 0.2%...
s of France. This tibiotarsus was destroyed in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
during the bombing of Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, but casts remain. In 1939, Gaillard described a second species of Strigogyps, S. minor, based on a humerus
Humerus
The humerus is a long bone in the arm or forelimb that runs from the shoulder to the elbow....
, two coracoids and two carpometacarpi also from Quercy. In 1981, Mourer-Chauviré redescribed S. minor as Ameghinornis minor, the only member of the new Phorusrhacid
Phorusrhacidae
Phorusrhacids , colloquially known as "terror birds" as the larger species were apex predators during the Miocene, were a clade of large carnivorous flightless birds that were the dominant predators in South America during the Cenozoic, 62–2 million years ago. They were roughly 1–3 meters tall...
subfamily, Ameghinornithinae. Ameghinornis was later placed in its own family, ameghinornithidae. In 1987, Peters named another monospecific genus of Ameghinornithid, Aenigmavis sapea, based on a nearly complete skeleton from the Middle Eocene Messel pit
Messel pit
The Messel Pit is a disused quarry near the village of Messel, about southeast of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Bituminous shale was mined there. Because of its abundance of fossils, it has significant geological and scientific importance...
of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Mayr (2005) found Aenigmavis to be a species of Strigogyps, S. sapea, and found Ameghinornis to be synonymous with S. dubius, as they both came from Quercy, and are almost identical except for coracoids and carpometacarpi of Ameghinornis, which Mayr found to be unlike other Ameghinornithids, and probably from an Idiornithid.
In 1935, Lambrecht described a new New World vulture
New World vulture
The New World Vulture or Condor family Cathartidae contains seven species in fivegenera, all but one of which are monotypic. It includes five vultures and two condors found in warm and temperate areas of the Americas....
, Eocathartes robustus, and a hornbill
Hornbill
Hornbills are a family of bird found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly-colored and sometimes has a casque on the upper mandible. Both the common English and the scientific name of the family...
, Geiseloceros robustus, from the Middle Eocene (Lutetian
Lutetian
The Lutetian is, in the geologic timescale, a stage or age in the Eocene. It spans the time between and . The Lutetian is preceded by the Ypresian and is followed by the Bartonian. Together with the Bartonian it is sometimes referred to as the Middle Eocene subepoch...
) of the Geisel Valley of Germany. Each as based on a single specimen, and they were found very close together. Mayr (2007) found them to be synonymous and a species of Strigogyps, S. robustus.
Recent studies (Alvarenga & Höfling 2003, Mayr 2005) have found Strigogyps to be a more basal member of Cariamae, and not particularly close to Phorusrhachids. Salmila robusta, another bird from Messel was found to be more basal than Strigogyps, and the clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
composed of Salmila and Cariamae to be the sister taxon to Psophiidae within a monophyletic Gruiformes
Gruiformes
The Gruiformes are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like"....
.
Fragmentary remains from the Palaeocene and/or Eocene of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
have also been suggested to be Phorusrhachids, but, like Strigogyps, they probably aren't.