Evolution of the Cenozoic marine avifaunas of Europe

The fossil record of the Cenozoic marine birds from European seas is summarized. Three main phases in the evolution of this avifauna are discerned, namely the Paleocene-Eocene, Oligo-Miocene, and Pliocene-Recent ones. These phases coincide with major changes in climate evolution. A key event was the...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien. Serie A, für Mineralogie und Petrographie, Geologie und Paläontologie, Anthropologie und Prähistorie für Mineralogie und Petrographie, Geologie und Paläontologie, Anthropologie und Prähistorie, 2009-01, Vol.111, p.357-373
Main Author: Mlíkovský, Jiří
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological taxonomies
Birds
Evolution
Fossils
GEOLOGIE UND PALÄONTOLOGIE
Miocene epoch
Ornithology
Paleontology
Sea birds
Seas
Zoology
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The fossil record of the Cenozoic marine birds from European seas is summarized. Three main phases in the evolution of this avifauna are discerned, namely the Paleocene-Eocene, Oligo-Miocene, and Pliocene-Recent ones. These phases coincide with major changes in climate evolution. A key event was the "Messinian Crisis" in the late Miocene, which none of the local seabirds survived. The modern marine avifauna of the Mediterranean Sea is of post-Miocene origin.
ISSN:0255-0091