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Information about Iberomesornis

Iberomesornis
Fossil range: Early Cretaceous
Enlarge picture
Reconstruction of Iberomesornis (Madrid)

Reconstruction of Iberomesornis (Madrid)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Aves
Subclass:Enantiornithes
Order:Iberomesornithiformes (disputed)
Family:Iberomesornithidae
Genus:Iberomesornis
Sanz & J. Bonaparte, 1992
Species:I. romeralli
Binomial name
Iberomesornis romeralli
Sanz & J. Bonaparte, 1992


Iberomesornis ("Spanish intermediate bird") is a monotypic genus of enantiornithine bird, discovered in the Early Cretaceous Las Hoyas deposits of Spain in 1985 and live between 137-121 million years ago. This formation was once a forest surrounding a lake. Iberomesornis romeralli was more advanced physically than Archaeopteryx. Most other birds from this time (around 135 million years ago) have reptilian characteristics, such as a long tail. The vertebrate column ends in a pygostyle: a splint of bone made of fused tail vertabrae that supports the tail feathers. Its wings still sported claws, but the thumb claw was reduced.

Iberomesornis was quite small - growing to a wingspan of 20 centimeters and weighing 2 ounces. Overall it was no bigger than a modern goldfinch. Since the skull is not known intact, its diet remains a subject of guesswork. Possibly this bird ate insects and aquatic crustaceans. Since the discovery of Iberomesornis, many more Enanitiornithine fossils have come to light in the quarries of Liaoning provice, China. Well preserved specimins of Chinese species such as Sinornis and Confuciousornis have premitted scientists to understand the birds' earl fossil history.

Fossils have been found in Europe.

Popular Culture

They appeared in the BBC series Walking with Dinosaurs, where they were depicted as having bright blue feathers.

References

  • Sanz, J. L. & Bonaparte, José F. (1992): A New Order of Birds (Class Aves) from the Lower Cretaceous of Spain. In: Jonathan J. Becker (ed.): Papers in Avian Paleontology Honoring Pierce Brodkorb. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County Contributions in Science 36: 38-49.
The Early Cretaceous (timestratigraphic name) or the Lower Cretaceous (logstratigraphic name), is the earlier of the two major divisions of the Cretaceous Period. It began about 146 million years ago.
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Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. Scientific classification also can be called scientific taxonomy, but should be distinguished from folk taxonomy, which lacks scientific basis.
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Chordata
Bateson, 1885

Typical Classes

See below

Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates.
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Aves
Linnaeus, 1758

Orders

About two dozen - see section below

Birds (class Aves) are bipedal, warm-blooded, egg-laying vertebrate animals.
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Enantiornithes
Walker, 1981

Orders

see text
Synonyms

Enantiornithomorpha
Chiappe, 1999

Enantiornithes

Enantiornithes is an extinct group of flying Protobirds.
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For the historical figure, see Joseph Bonaparte
José Fernando Bonaparte, Ph.D. (b. June 14, 1928), is an Argentine paleontologist who discovered a plethora of South American dinosaurs and mentored a new generation of Argentine paleontologists like Rodolfo
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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1960s  1970s  1980s  - 1990s -  2000s  2010s  2020s
1989 1990 1991 - 1992 - 1993 1994 1995

Year 1992 (MCMXCII
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binomial nomenclature is the formal system of naming species. The system is also called binominal nomenclature (particularly in zoological circles), binary nomenclature (particularly in botanical circles), or the binomial classification system.
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For the historical figure, see Joseph Bonaparte
José Fernando Bonaparte, Ph.D. (b. June 14, 1928), is an Argentine paleontologist who discovered a plethora of South American dinosaurs and mentored a new generation of Argentine paleontologists like Rodolfo
..... Click the link for more information.
19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1960s  1970s  1980s  - 1990s -  2000s  2010s  2020s
1989 1990 1991 - 1992 - 1993 1994 1995

Year 1992 (MCMXCII
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Monotypic is an adjective that refers to a taxonomic group with only one type:
  • in botany it means that a taxon has only one species; Ginkgo is a monotypic genus, while Ginkgoaceae is a monotypic family.

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genus (plural: genera) is part of the Latinized name for an organism. It is a name which reflects the classification of the organism by grouping it with other closely similar organisms.
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Enantiornithes
Walker, 1981

Orders

see text
Synonyms

Enantiornithomorpha
Chiappe, 1999

Enantiornithes

Enantiornithes is an extinct group of flying Protobirds.
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Aves
Linnaeus, 1758

Orders

About two dozen - see section below

Birds (class Aves) are bipedal, warm-blooded, egg-laying vertebrate animals.
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The Cretaceous Period is one of the major divisions of the geologic timescale, reaching from the end of the Jurassic Period (i.e. from 145.5 ± 4.0 million years ago (Ma)) to the beginning of the Paleocene epoch of the Tertiary Period (about 65.5 ± 0.3 Ma).
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Motto
"Plus Ultra"   (Latin)
"Further Beyond"
Anthem
"Marcha Real" 1
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Archaeopteryx
Meyer, 1861

Species

A. lithographica Meyer, 1861 (type)
Synonyms

See below Archaeopteryx (from Ancient Greek archaios
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Pygostyle refers to a number of the final few caudal vertebrae fused into a single ossification, supporting the tail feathers and musculature. In modern birds, the rectrices attach to these.
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Goldfinch may refer to any of the following species of bird from the genus Carduelis
  • American Goldfinch, Carduelis tristis
  • Lesser Goldfinch, Carduelis psaltria
  • Lawrence's Goldfinch, Carduelis lawrencei
  • European Goldfinch, Carduelis carduelis

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Insecta
Linnaeus, 1758

Orders
Subclass Apterygota
* Archaeognatha (bristletails)
* Thysanura (silverfish)
Subclass Pterygota
* Infraclass Paleoptera (Probably paraphyletic)

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crustaceans (Crustacea) are a large group of arthropods, comprising approximately 52,000 described species [1], and are usually treated as a subphylum [2].
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Sinornis or Cathayornis. In any case, its fossils were recovered from the Jiufotang Formation at Liaoning, People's Republic of China. It lived 124 mya during the Early Cretaceous. It seems to have been more advanced than its relative Eocathayornis.
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Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. Physically and geologically, Europe is the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, west of Asia. Europe is bounded to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the Mediterranean Sea,
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The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Type Broadcast radio and television
Country  United Kingdom
Availability    National
International 
Founder John Reith
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Walking with Dinosaurs was a six-part television series produced by the BBC, narrated by Kenneth Branagh, and first aired in the UK in 1999. The series was subsequently aired in North America on the Discovery Channel, with Branagh's voice replaced with that of Avery Brooks.
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