A new long‐tailed basal bird from the Lower Cretaceous of north‐eastern China. (November 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Lefèvre, Ulysse; Hu, Dongyu; Escuillié, François; Dyke, Gareth; Godefroit, Pascal
• Is Part Of: Biological journal of the Linnean Society. Volume 113:Number 3(2014:Nov.)
• Page Start: 790
• Page End: 804
• Publication Date: 2014-11
• Subjects: Biology -- Periodicals; Evolution (Biology) -- Periodicals; 570
• DOI: 10.1111/bij.12343
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0024-4066

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main"> <title> <x xml:space="preserve">Abstract</x> </title> <p>A new basal Avialae, <italic><bold>J</bold></italic><bold><italic>eholornis curvipes</italic> sp. nov.</bold>, from the Yixian Formation (Lower Cretaceous) of Liaoning Province (north‐eastern China) is described. A revision of long‐tailed birds from China and a phylogenetic analysis of basal Avialae suggest that Jeholornithiformes were paraphyletic, with <italic>Jixiangornis orientalis</italic> being the sister‐taxon of pygostylia. The phylogenetic analysis also recovered that the tail reduction is a unique event in the evolution of birds. <italic>Jeholornis</italic> species were cursorial, nonperching, and seed‐eating birds. © 2014 The Linnean Society of London, <italic>Biological Journal of the Linnean Society</italic>, 2014, <bold>113</bold>, 790–804.</p> </abstract>