''Platydyptes'' is a

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 ...

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

penguin Penguins (order (biology), order List of Sphenisciformes by population, Sphenisciformes , family (biology), family Spheniscidae ) are a group of Water bird, aquatic flightless birds. They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere: on ...

s from the Late Oligocene to Early Miocene (about 27.3 to 21.7 million years ago) of New Zealand. It was created by Brian Marples in 1952 and contains three relatively large

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

, all of which were described from the north

Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...

to south

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

region in the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

. The genus name ''Platydyptes'' combines the Greek ''platys'' ("broad and flat"), alluding to the shape of the

humerus The humerus (; ) is a long bone in the arm that runs from the shoulder to the elbow. It connects the scapula and the two bones of the lower arm, the radius and ulna, and consists of three sections. The humeral upper extremity consists of a roun ...

, with ''dyptes'' ("diver").

Species

* ''Platydyptes marplesi'' Simpson, 1971 – Simpson's penguin. The smallest species, the

epithet An epithet (, ), also byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) known for accompanying or occurring in place of a name and having entered common usage. It has various shades of meaning when applied to seemingly real or fictitious people, di ...

honours Brian Marples, the common name honours the describer George Gaylord Simpson. * ''Platydyptes novaezealandiae'' (Oliver, 1930); Marples, 1952 – wide-flippered penguin. The epithet is a Latinisation of “New Zealand”. * ''Platydyptes amiesi'' Marples, 1952 – Amies’ penguin. The largest species, it was about the size of a

king penguin The king penguin (''Aptenodytes patagonicus'') is the second largest species of penguin, smaller, but somewhat similar in appearance to the emperor penguin. There are two subspecies: ''A. p. patagonicus'' and ''A. p. halli''; ''patagonicus'' i ...

, though with longer flippers. The epithet and common name honour A.C. Amies, a University of Otago student who collected the first specimen in 1946 and was killed in Malaysia soon afterwards.

References

Spheniscidae Oligocene birds Miocene birds Extinct birds of New Zealand Bird genera Extinct penguins Taxa named by Brian John Marples {{Paleo-bird-stub