#Moicene

[astronomy-to-zoology]

Genus: Pelagornis

...a genus of pseudotooth birds that lived from the Early Miocene to the Early Pleistocene. Members of Pelagornis were quite large with the biggest specimens boasting wingspans of 15-20 feet and weighing in at 50-75 pounds. True to their names pseudotooth birds like Pelagornis did not have true teeth, but sharp beak projections which likely aided them in catching large slippery fish. Pelagornis likely lived a similar lifestyle to extinct fish-eating pterosaurs as they probably roamed the seas catching fish and cephalopods mid-flight.

Phylogeny

Animalia-Chordata-Aves-Odontopterygiformes?-Pelagornithidae-Pelagornis

Images: Daniel Martinez Piña and Didier Descouens