Biology:Gretcheniao
Gretcheniao is an extinct genus of enantiornithean that lived during the Early Cretaceous epoch, in the Barremian. The only species described as of 2025 is Gretcheniao sinensis, known from the Yixian Formation of Liaoning.[1]
Though the fossil has no typical features of the group such as extravagant tail plumage, and the skull is badly crushed, cladistic analyses are stillable to evaluate enough data to tentatively place Gretcheniao into the Bohaiornithidae family. Initially, its placement was unresolvably between the core group of Bohaiornithidae and more advanced enantiornithids such as Cathayornis, Eoalulavis and Neuquenornis. A 2026 analysis including vastly more close relatives of Bohaiornis as well as additional advanced enantiornithids resolved this question by placing Gretcheniao as a basal member of the Bohaiornithidae, meaning that at a comparatively late date it still retained ancestral traits that were lost in more advanced bohaiornithids, but retained in some relatives of Bohaiornithidae.[1][2]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Chiappe, Luis María; Qingjin, Meng; Serrano, Francisco; Sigurdsen, Trond; Min, Wang; Bell, Alyssa; Di, Liu (25 October 2019). "New Bohaiornis-like bird from the Early Cretaceous of China: enantiornithine interrelationships and flight performance" (in en). PeerJ 7. doi:10.7717/peerj.7846. ISSN 2167-8359. PMID 31667014. PMC 6816414. https://peerj.com/articles/7846/. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
- ↑ Clark, Alexander D.; O’Connor, Jingmai K.; Wang, Xiaoli; Wang, Yan; Pruett-Jones, Stephen; Zhang, Xiangyu; Wang, Xing; Zheng, Xiaoting et al. (2026-05-27). Liu, Jun. ed. "Hyperelongate ornamental tail feathers in a new early Cretaceous enantiornithine bird" (in en). PLOS One 21 (5). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0347641. ISSN 1932-6203.
Wikidata ☰ Q73109389 entry
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