A marabou (Ciconiidae:Leptoptilos) from the Middle Pleistocene of northeastern China

Abstract

Abstract.-A new species of marabou, Leptoptilos lüi sp. nov., is described on the basis of a cranium, distal humerus, and proximal phalanx of the major digit, from the Middle Pleistocene Jinniushan locality, Liaoning Province of northeastern China. Fossil crania of the genus Leptoptilos are rare, and that of the new bird is distinct from the crania of its extant relatives. The forelimb elements are the largest and most robust among living and fossil species of Leptoptilos and are characterized by autapomorphic characters. Leptoptilos lüi, like the African Marabou Stork (L. crumeniferus), probably possessed a considerable flight capability and fed mainly on pieces of carrion torn from carcasses by other, sympatric large scavengers. The new stork aids in our understanding of the paleoecology and paleoenvironment of northeastern China in the Middle Pleistocene, helps us characterize the scavenger guild that fed on the Middle Pleistocene megafauna, and shows that the genus Leptoptilos, now restricted to the Old World tropics, extended into higher latitudes in the Middle Pleistocene. Un Marabú (Ciconiidae: Leptoptilos) del Pleistoceno Medio del Nororiente de ChinaResumen.-Describimos una nueva especie de marabú, Leptoptilos lüi sp. nov., basados en un cráneo, la parte distal de un húmero y la falange proximal del dígito más grande. La nueva especie proviene de la localidad Jinniushan del Pleistoceno medio, provincia de Liaoning, nororiente de China. Los cráneos fósiles del género Leptoptilos son raros y el de la nueva especie es distinto de los cráneos de sus parientes vivos. Los elementos de la extremidad delantera son los más grandes y robustos entre las especies conocidas (vivas y extintas) de Leptoptilos y se caracterizan por presentar caracteres autoapomórficos. Tal como L. crumeniferus, L. lüi probablemente poseía una capacidad de vuelo considerable y se alimentaba principalmente de trozos de carroña arrancados de cadáveres por otras especies simpátricas de grandes carroñeros. Esta nueva ave ayuda a nuestro entendimiento de la paleoecología y el paleoambiente del nororiente de China en el Pleistoceno medio, y a caracterizar el gremio de especies carroñeras que se alimentaban de la megafauna de mediados del Pleistoceno. Además, nos demuestra que el género Leptoptilos, ahora restringido zonas tropicales del Viejo Mundo, se extendía hacia latitudes más altas en ese periodo.-699 -

The Identification and Modification of Greater Adjutant (Leptoptilos dubius) Bones in the Holocene Archaeological Record of Northern Vietnam

“…Remains of Leptoptilos have been found at a number of fossil and archaeological localities across Asia (Milne‐Edwards, ; Wetmore, ; Harrison, ; Harrison & Walker, ; Meijer & Due, ; Zhang et al ., ), but these all represent extinct species with body masses larger than extant storks. Weesie () reported the presence of the extant taxa L .…”

A night heron (Ciconiiformes, Ardeidae) and a stork (Ciconiidae) from the Pliocene of Myanmar (Burma)

“…There are no hindlimb limb bones known from L. lüi, and thus no comparisons can be made to the Sulegon specimen. However, given the very large size of the distal humerus in L. lüi (Zhang et al, 2012), it is very unlikely that this smaller leg bone belongs to the same species. In summary, there are no features preserved that distinctly suggest a phylogenetic position of this specimen with a particular genus group (i.e., Ephippiorhynchus or Leptoptilos), but its large size is suggestive that it belongs among the taxa placed in Leptoptilini.…”

“…However, molecular phylogenetic analyses do not consistently support the monophyly of Leptoptilini (Slikas, 1997(Slikas, , 1998, and a recent morphological analysis (de Pietri and Mayr, 2014) demonstrated only weak boostrap support for the group as whole. The large-bodied storks include the very large (or even 'giant') storks of Leptoptilos falconeri (Harrison, 1974;Louchart et al, 2005) from India (and elsewhere), L. robustus from Flores Island, Indonesia (Meijer and Due, 2010;Meijer et al, 2013), L. titan (Wetmore, 1940) from Java, Indonesia, and L. lüi from northeastern China (Zhang et al, 2012). The largest of these extinct storks have been hypothesized to stand 1.8 to 2 meters tall (Louchart et al, 2005;Meijier and Due, 2010).…”

More bones ofLeptoptilos robustusfrom Flores reveal new insights into giant marabou stork paleobiology and biogeography

“…Extinct giant marabou stork species were broadly distributed across continental Africa and Eurasia during the Plio-Pleistocene [1][2][3]. Of these, Leptoptilos falconeri is the best known with fossils of this species recovered at sites in Africa (Pliocene-Early Pleistocene) and Eurasia (Pliocene) [1].…”

“…Relatively younger sites in northeastern China and Java preserve evidence of Leptoptilos lüi (approx. 260 000 years ago at Jinniushan) [2] and Leptoptilos titan (Late Pleistocene at Watualang) [4], respectively. In some instances, these giant carnivorous birds have been found in association with proboscideans, vultures, and even hominins, suggesting a possible symbiotic relationship existed among these taxa [2,3].…”