A New Presbyornithid Bird (Aves, Anseriformes) from the Late Cretaceous of Southern Mongolia

More evidence for plesiomorphy of the quadrate in the Eocene anseriform avian genus Presbyornis

“…The presbyornithids were once viewed as ancestral anseriforms (Olson and Feduccia 1980) and their close relatives of are now known from Late Cretaceous deposits (Kurochkin et al 2002;Clarke et al 2005). Currently, they are widely considered to be closely related to ducks and geese (Anatidae) within crown-group anseriforms (Ericson 1997;Livezey 1997;Clarke et al 2005;Mayr 2008).…”

Phylogenetically vetted and stratigraphically constrained fossil calibrations within Aves

“…Specimens assigned to the Presbyornithidae are among the oldest known fossils that have been interpreted as crown clade birds. Teviornis gobiensis from the Late Cretaceous Nemegt Formation of Mongolia was also assigned to Presbyornithidae (Kurochkin et al, 2002). However, this species is known only from a few wing elements, and its affinities remain controversial (Clarke and Norell, 2004;Kurochkin and Dyke, 2010).…”

Bird Evolution Across the K–Pg Boundary and the Basal Neornithine Diversification

“…This argument contrasts with preliminary reports by Stidham [2002Stidham [ , 2008, which indicate that neornithine birds from the latest Cretaceous of the Western Interior Seaway of North America were very diverse, both taxonomically and ecologically. Nonetheless, the discoveries of the fossil anseriforms (waterfowl) Teviornis gobiensis and Vegavis iaai from the latest Cretaceous of the Mongolia and Antarctica, respectively, have provided definite and properly phylogenetically constrained evidence of the presence of neornithine birds prior to the K-Pg boundary (Kurochkin et al, 2002;Clarke et al, 2005). In addition, a number of reasonably complete, putative fossil modern birds have been reported, deriving from the latest Cretaceous of Antarctica.…”