Two Fossils Of Giant Sized Bony – Toothed Sea Birds Found In Antarctica

Twice Larger Than Albatross With 5 To 6 Meter Wingspan

California, Oct 29: A team of paleontologists have studied two fossils collected from Seymour Island, off the northern most tip of Antarctica. They belonged to a group of sea birds known as pelagornithids (bony-toothed birds) that lived 50 million years ago. They have bony projections on the jaws that resemble sharp- pointed teeth, though they are not true teeth (pseudo teeth) which help them catch squid and fish from the sea. Their foot bone is called tarsometatarsus. The middle portion of the lower jaw with pseudo teeth which was 3 cm long was studied and it predicts that their skull would have been 60 cm long. At this scale the bird’s wingspan would have been 5 to 6 meters making them one of the largest, gigantic sea birds that ruled the ocean in those days.

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