''Alamitornis'' is an extinct
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
of
basal ornithuromorph
Euornithes (from Greek ' meaning "true birds") is a natural group which includes the most recent common ancestor of all avialans closer to modern birds than to ''Sinornis''.
Description
Clarke ''et al''. (2006) found that the most primitive know ...
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
, possible within the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Patagopterygidae. Remains have been found in the
Upper Cretaceous
The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''creta'', the ...
Los Alamitos Formation
The Los Alamitos Formation is a geological formation of the North Patagonian Massif in Rio Negro Province, northwestern Patagonia, Argentina, whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous (Late Campanian to Maastrichtian). Dinosaur remains are amo ...
at
Los Alamitos, Río Negro Province,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
.
It was first named by Federico L. Agnolin and Agustín G. Martinelli in 2009 and the
type species
In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...
is ''Alamitornis minutus''.
References
Bird genera
Maastrichtian life
Cretaceous birds of South America
Late Cretaceous animals of South America
Cretaceous Argentina
Fossils of Argentina
Fossil taxa described in 2009
Prehistoric euornitheans
{{Paleo-bird-stub