A new clade of basal Early Cretaceous pygostylian birds and developmental plasticity of the avian shoulder girdle

2018/09/24 by Min Wang, Thomas A. Stidham, Zhonghe Zhou · 2 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Environmental Science · #Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology #Evolution and Paleontology Studies #Ichthyology and Marine Biology

paper · pdf · doi:10.1073/pnas.1812176115

openalex publication_date 2018/09/24 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01

Abstract

Significance We report the second most basal clade of the short-tailed birds (Pygostylia) from the Early Cretaceous. The new family Jinguofortisidae exhibits a mosaic assembly of plesiomorphic nonavian theropod characteristics, particularly of the fused scapulocoracoid and more derived flight-related features, further increasing the known ecomorphological diversity of basal avian lineages. We discuss the evolution of the scapula and coracoid in major tetrapod groups and early birds and hypothesize that the fused scapulocoracoid in some basal avian lineages, although rare, results from an accelerated rate of ossification and that the avian shoulder girdle likely was transformed by developmental plasticity along an evolutionary lineage leading to the crown group of birds.

Citations

• An Archaeopteryx-like theropod from China and the origin of Avialae
• Anatomy of the primitive bird Sapeornis chaoyangensis from the Early Cretaceous of Liaoning, China
• Structure, form, and function of flight in engineering and the living world
• Insight into the evolution of avian flight from a new clade of Early Cretaceous ornithurines from China and the morphology of Yixianornis grabaui

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