New evidence of feathers in the Crato Formation supporting a reappraisal on the presence of Aves

Sayão, Juliana Manso; Saraiva, Antônio Álamo Feitosa; Uejima, Angélica M. K.

doi:10.1590/s0001-37652011000100010

Cited by 27 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…Fossil feathers are extremely rare in the fossil record, but have been more commonly found in the Northern Hemisphere, particularly in Mesozoic strata from China. Reports from the Southern Hemisphere are extremely scarce, with reports from Brazil being the most common (Sayao et al 2011) and the Victoria specimen from Australia the southernmost record (Talent et al 1966). The specimen described here represents the first record of a feather from the Antarctic continent.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 85%

Eocene fossil feather from King George Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica

et al. 2013

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Abstract:The first fossil avian feather from Antarctica is reported here, from the early to middle Eocene Fossil Hill Formation at Fildes Peninsula, King George Island, Antarctica. Characteristics such as its form, asymmetry of vanes, closed-pennaceous vanes with barbules and a deep ventral groove indicate that the feather was used for flight. The site from which the feather was collected is known to yield a variety of well-preserved trace fossils, palaeobotanical and palaeoenvironmental remains, suggesting a shorebird ecotype for the owner of this feather, certainly belonging to a Neornithes. The continental position, preservation as an external mould and type of feather makes this specimen a novel and an exceedingly rare record.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 85%

Eocene fossil feather from King George Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica

et al. 2013

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“…This formation has yielded abundant and exceptionally preserved fossils of a large variety of plants and animals, representing one of the best well-known terrestrial ecosystems for the Early Cretaceous 16 . Isolated feathers probably belonging to birds have been described from these beds 17 18 , as well as succinct reports on avian skeletons associated with poorly preserved feathers 19 .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Mesozoic bird from Gondwana preserving feathers

et al. 2015

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The fossil record of birds in the Mesozoic of Gondwana is mostly based on isolated and often poorly preserved specimens, none of which has preserved details on feather anatomy. We provide the description of a fossil bird represented by a skeleton with feathers from the Early Cretaceous of Gondwana (NE Brazil). The specimen sheds light on the homology and 3D structure of the rachis-dominated feathers, previously known from two-dimensional slabs. The rectrices exhibit a row of rounded spots, probably corresponding to some original colour pattern. The specimen supports the identification of the feather scapus as the rachis, which is notably robust and elliptical in cross-section. In spite of its juvenile nature, the tail plumage resembles the feathering of adult individuals of modern birds. Documentation of rachis-dominated tail in South American enantiornithines broadens the paleobiogeographic distribution of basal birds with this tail feather morphotype, up to now only reported from China.

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“…Even though, the poor record of Mesozoic birds, added to the absence of feathered dinosaurs, makes the taxonomic assignment even harder to infer (Naish, 2007;Sayão et al, 2011). It is unlikely that these feathers belonged to nontheropod dinosaurs, such as sauropods or ornithischians, once they are also absent in the Araripe Basin (Naish, 2004).…”

Section: Sedimentary Deposition Paleoenvironment and Taphonomymentioning

confidence: 99%

New occurrences of fossilized feathers: systematics, taphonomy, and paleoecology of the Santana Formation of the Araripe Basin (Cretaceous), NE, Brazil

Prado

Anelli

Romero

2015

Preprint

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Feathers are the most complex and diversified integuments in vertebrates. Their complexity are provided by the different forms and functions, and they occur both in nonavian and avian-dinosaurs. Despite their rareness, feathers are found throughout the world, and the Santana Formation (comprised by Crato and Romualdo formations) of the Araripe Basin is responsible for the majority of these records in Brazil. Most occurrences is consisted by isolated feathers, where downy-feathers is the recurrent morphotype, two coelurosaurs and one enantiornithe bird. The sedimentary deposition of this unit is consisted by a lacustrine (Crato Fm) and lagoonal (Romualdo Fm) environments, where reducing conditions prevailed, precluding the activity of bottom dwelling organisms that favored the exquisite preservation. Despite the arid and hot conditions during the Cretaceous, life teemed in the adjacency of both paleolakes, however, feathered non-avian dinosaurs were not found yet in the Crato Member. By the great diversity of life that existed in the paleolake surroundings, is possible to recognize, through the fossil record, that a complex and diversified trophic chain was well established during the time period of sedimentation of this unit. When the remains reached the bottom of the paleolakes, the subsequent isolation from the environment allowed their preservation. In this work, three fossilized feathers, consisted of two downy and one contour feather, extracted from the laminated limestone of the Crato Member of the Santana Formation, were described and identified according to morphological and evolutionary models. We also used the terminology commonly applied to extant organisms. Relying on the fossil record of this unit and the adjacencies formations and basins (by autochthonous condition), taxonomic inferences can be made when the lowest hierarchy level is considered, and hence, is possible to propose the plausible taxa that could bear these elements. Taphonomic and paleoecological aspects, such as the preservation of these structures, and the presence of dinosaurs, were also reviewed, as well as the future perspectives about the study of these elements. Despite the virtual low significance, the pragmatical study of fossilized feathers, can help with the understanding of the evolution and paleobiology of dinosaurs, especially on the South Hemisphere. ABSTRACTFeathers are the most complex and diversified integuments in vertebrates. Their complexity are provided by the different forms and functions, and they occur both in non-avian and avian-dinosaurs. Despite their rareness, feathers are found throughout the world, and the Santana Formation (comprised by Crato and Romualdo formations) of the Araripe Basin is responsible for the majority of these records in Brazil. Most occurrences is consisted by isolated feathers, where downy-feathers is the recurrent morphotype, two coelurosaurs and one enantiornithe bird. The sedimentary deposition of this unit is consisted by a lacustrine (Crato Fm) and lagoonal (Romualdo Fm) environ...

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New evidence of feathers in the Crato Formation supporting a reappraisal on the presence of Aves

Cited by 27 publications

References 56 publications

Eocene fossil feather from King George Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica

Eocene fossil feather from King George Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica

A Mesozoic bird from Gondwana preserving feathers

New occurrences of fossilized feathers: systematics, taphonomy, and paleoecology of the Santana Formation of the Araripe Basin (Cretaceous), NE, Brazil

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