Abstract
Although the skulls of the Spheniscidae are unusual in the paleontologic record, they show important features useful in the systematics of the group, as well as in the rest of the birds. Until now, fossil occurrences were restricted to six skulls: Paraptenodytes antarctica and one new species from the Gaiman Formation (Early Miocene) and Puerto Madryn Formation (Late Miocene) of Argentina, respectively; Spheniscus megaramphus and S. urbinai from the Pisco Formation (Late Miocene), Peru; Marplesornis novaezealandiae from New Zealand (Pliocene); and Spheniscidae cf. Spheniscus from the Bahia Inglesa Formation (Middle-Late Miocene), Chile. Five new materials have been exhumed from this last unit. These skulls, which come from the Caldera locality (Region of Atacama, Chile), have been preliminarily assigned to Palaeospheniscus (Aves, Spheniscidae), constituting the first skulls described for this species. We made an important contribution to the knowledge of the fossil avifauna of Chile and particularly of the Bahia Inglesa Formation.
Highlights
Los Sphenisciformes constituyen un Orden de aves en el cual la totalidad de las especies son acuáticas marinas y presentan fuertes adaptaciones al buceo
Fossil occurrences were restricted to six skulls: Paraptenodytes antarctica and one new species from the Gaiman Formation (Early Miocene) and Puerto Madryn Formation (Late Miocene) of Argentina, respectively; Spheniscus megaramphus and S. urbinai from the Pisco Formation (Late Miocene), Perú; Marplesornis novaezealandiae from New Zealand (Pliocene); and Spheniscidae cf
Five new materials have been exhumed from this last unit. These skulls, which come from the Caldera locality (Region of Atacama, Chile), have been preliminarily assigned to Palaeospheniscus (Aves, Spheniscidae), constituting the first skulls described for this species
Summary
Los materiales aquí descritos se encuentran depositados en el Museo Nacional de Historia Natural (MNHN) de Santiago. Como materiales de comparación directa se consultaron los cráneos de las especies actuales y fósiles de las colecciones argentinas del Museo de La Plata (MLP), Museo de Ciencias Naturales “Bernardino Rivadavia” (MACN) de Buenos Aires y Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio de Trelew (MEF). Las descripciones de los materiales se efectuaron empleando la terminología de Baumel & Witmer (1993) y las medidas, expresadas en milímetros, fueron tomadas con un Calibre Vernier. La sistemática empleada sigue la propuesta de Acosta Hospitaleche (2004) y para el establecimiento de las edades se utilizó la Geología de la Carta de Caldera (Godoy et al 2003)
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