Messelirrisor
| Messelirrisor Temporal range: Middle Eocene | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Messelirrisor halcyrostris | |
| Fossil | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Bucerotiformes |
| Family: | Messelirrisoridae Mayr, 1998 |
| Genus: | Messelirrisor Mayr, 1998 |
| Species | |
|
Messelirrisor grandis | |
The extinct Messelirrisoridae are a family of Bucerotiformes. Tiny hoopoe-like birds, they were among the predominant small forest birds of Central Europe during the Middle Eocene (some 49-37 mya).
Fossilized remains of the single known genus Messelirrisor have been found in the Messel Pit (Hesse, Germany). The Messelirrisoridae are the earliest representatives of the hoopoe/wood-hoopoe lineage known at present.
Sources
- Mayr, G. 2000. Tiny hoopoe-like birds from the Middle Eocene of Messel (Germany). The Auk 117(4):964-970
- http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=1528405
External links
- Specimen photo. Retrieved 2007-AUG-22.
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