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Miodytes
''Miodytes'' is a fossil genus of grebe known from a nearly complete specimen from Valjevo Basin, western Serbia known from an almost complete right wing skeleton. It contains a single species, ''M. serbicus''. History The specimen was collected from Bela Stena, Suseoke village. The binomial nomenclature for ''Miodytes serbicus'' means "Serbian Miocene diver". Description The holotype specimen of ''Miodytes'' is a slab that contains the right wing skeleton of the bird, nearly completed, consisting of the distal fragment of humerus, ulna, radius, carpometacarpus and parts of the wingtips. Due to the nature of the bones in the slab, the authors Dimitreijevich et al. (2002) used the humerus part and the carpometacarpus to provide comparative anatomy and a diagnosis. ''Miodytes'' can be differentiated from other grebes as the genus has a well developed epicondylus ventralis and a very deep and long sulcus musculi brachialis. The processus supracondylaris dorsalis is absent from th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grebe
Grebes () are aquatic diving birds in the order Podicipediformes . Grebes are widely distributed freshwater birds, with some species also found in marine habitats during migration and winter. Some flightless species exist as well, most notably in stable lakes. The order contains a single family, the Podicipedidae, which includes 22 species in six extant genera. Although, superficially, they resemble other diving birds such as loons and coots, they are most closely related to flamingos, as supported by morphological, molecular and paleontological data. Many species are monogamous and are known for their courtship displays, with the pair performing synchronized dances across the water's surface. The birds build floating vegetative nests where they lay several eggs. About a third of the world's grebes are listed at various levels of conservation concerns—the biggest threats including habitat loss, the introduction of invasive predatory fish and human poaching. As such, three spe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Early Miocene
The Early Miocene (also known as Lower Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene Epoch made up of two stages: the Aquitanian and Burdigalian stages. The sub-epoch lasted from 23.03 ± 0.05 Ma to 15.97 ± 0.05 Ma (million years ago). It was preceded by the Oligocene epoch. As the climate started to get cooler, the landscape started to change. New mammals evolved to replace the extinct animals of the Oligocene epoch. The first members of the hyena and weasel family started to evolve to replace the extinct ''Hyaenodon'', entelodonts and bear-dogs. The chalicotheres survived the Oligocene epoch. A new genus of entelodont called ''Daeodon'' evolved in order to adapt to the new habitats and hunt the new prey animals of the Early Miocene epoch; it quickly became the top predator of North America. But it became extinct due to competition from '' Amphicyon'', a newcomer from Eurasia. ''Amphicyon'' bested ''Daeodon'' because the bear-dog Amphicyonidae is an extinct family of terrestr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valjevo Basin
Valjevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Ваљево, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Kolubara District in western Serbia. According to the 2011 census, the administrative area of Valjevo had 90,312 inhabitants, 59,073 of whom were urban dwellers. Valjevo occupies an area of 905 square kilometers; its altitude is 185 meters. The city is situated along the river Kolubara, a tributary of the Sava river. History In the nearby village of Petnica, scientists found the first complete neolithic habitat in Serbia and dated it at 6,000 years old. In Roman times this area was part of the province of Moesia. Valjevo was mentioned for the first time in 1393. It was an important staging post on the trade route that connected Bosnia to Belgrade. Valjevo became significant during the 16th and 17th centuries under stable Ottoman rule. According to Matija Nenadović, there were 24 mosques in Valjevo in the late 18th century. At the beginning of the 19th century most of the territory of Se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carpometacarpus
The carpometacarpus is a bone found in the hands of birds. It results from the fusion of the carpal and metacarpal bone, and is essentially a single fused bone between the wrist and the knuckles. It is a smallish bone in most birds, generally flattened and with a large hole in the middle. In flightless birds, however, its shape may be slightly different, or it might be absent entirely. It forms the tip of the wing skeleton in birds. To it, most of the primary remiges attach. The alula, by contrast, is formed by the thumb, which does not completely fuse with the other hand-bones. Likewise, the tipmost primaries attach to the phalanx bones. To non-biologists the carpometacarpus may be best known from buffalo wings. Buffalo wings come in two basic sizes, a large angled one containing three major bones, and a smaller flat one containing only two. The bone missing in the latter is the carpometacarpus. See also * Carpometacarpal joint The carpometacarpal (CMC) joints are five joint ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Petrel
Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. Description The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group (all except the albatross family, Diomedeidae). Having a fossil record that was assumed to extend back at least 60 million years, the Procellariiformes was long considered to be among the older bird groupings, other than the ratites, with presumably distant ties to penguins and loons. However, recent research and fossil finds such as ''Vegavis'' show that the Galliformes (pheasants, grouse and relatives), and Anseriformes (ducks, geese) are still not fully resolved. Known species All the members of the order are exclusively pelagic in distribution—returning to land only to breed. The family Procellariidae is the main radiation of medium-sized true petrels, characterised by united nostrils with medium septum, and a long outer functional primary feather. It is dom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shorebird
245px, A flock of Dunlins and Red knots">Red_knot.html" ;"title="Dunlins and Red knot">Dunlins and Red knots Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflats in order to foraging, forage for food crawling or burrowing in the mud and sand, usually small arthropods such as aquatic insects or crustaceans. The term "wader" is used in Europe, while "shorebird" is used in North America, where "wader" may be used instead to refer to long-legged wading birds such as storks and herons. There are about 210 species of wader, most of which live in wetland or coastal environments. Many species of Arctic and temperate regions are strongly migratory, but tropical birds are often resident, or move only in response to rainfall patterns. Some of the Arctic species, such as the little stint, are amongst the longest distance migrants, spending the non-breeding season in the southern hemisphere. Many of the sm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mirandornithes
Mirandornithes () is a clade that consists of flamingos and grebes. Many scholars use the term Phoenicopterimorphae for the superorder containing flamingoes and grebes. Determining the relationships of both groups has been problematic. Flamingos had been placed with numerous branches within Neognathae, such as ducks and storks. The grebes had been placed with the loons. However recent studies have confirmed these two branches as sister groups. Both primitive phoenicopteriformes and their closest relatives, the grebes, were highly aquatic.Mayr, G. (2014) The Eocene ''Juncitarsus'' – its phylogenetic position and significance for the evolution and higher-level affinities of flamingos and grebes. ''Comptes Rendus Palevol''. 13(1):9-18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crpv.2013.07.005 This indicates that the entire mirandornithe group evolved from aquatic, probably swimming ancestors. Synapomorphies According to Mayr (2004) and Sangster (2005) there are at least twelve distinct morpholo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
