Palaeeudyptes antarcticus
Encyclopedia
Palaeeudyptes antarcticus, rarely called the Narrow-flippered Penguin is the type species
of the extinct penguin
genus
Palaeeudyptes. It was a huge species, albeit probably with a large size variation. Although the size range can only be loosely estimated, the birds seem to have stood between 43 to 55 inches high in life (i.e. somewhat larger than an Emperor Penguin
), placing this species and its congener Palaeeudyptes marplesi
among the largest penguin species known. It was the last known Palaeeudyptes species, and although the exact time when it lived is not precisely determined, it may have evolved from P. marplesi, or they might even have been a single species which slightly decreased in size over time.
P. antarcticus was the first fossil penguin to become known to science. It was described from a single, slightly damaged, tarsometatarsus
(BM
A.1084) found in the Late Oligocene
Otekaike Limestone (23-28, possibly up to 34 MYA) at Kakanui
, New Zealand
. An older date seems quite possible in fact as other bones have now been recovered from the Late Eocene
(34-37 MYA) of the La Meseta Formation on Seymour Island
, Antarctica (Tambussi et al., 2006), but given the considerable distances in age and range involved, it is not completely certain that the bones belong to a single species.
This remains the only fossil
unequivocally assigned to this species, but numerous other bones have been found that may belong to it too. These fossils were once uncritically considered as being from P. antarcticus, merely because other large penguins were not known at that time, but have not been subject to scientific review according to modern standards. While some of these bones are now known to belong to other species, a large number are not unequivocally assignable to either P. antarcticus or P. marplesi, being intermediate in size (Simpson, 1971), lending support to the theory that these taxa were in reality a single species.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of the extinct penguin
Penguin
Penguins are a group of aquatic, flightless birds living almost exclusively in the southern hemisphere, especially in Antarctica. Highly adapted for life in the water, penguins have countershaded dark and white plumage, and their wings have become flippers...
genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Palaeeudyptes. It was a huge species, albeit probably with a large size variation. Although the size range can only be loosely estimated, the birds seem to have stood between 43 to 55 inches high in life (i.e. somewhat larger than an Emperor Penguin
Emperor Penguin
The Emperor Penguin is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species and is endemic to Antarctica. The male and female are similar in plumage and size, reaching in height and weighing anywhere from . The dorsal side and head are black and sharply delineated from the white belly,...
), placing this species and its congener Palaeeudyptes marplesi
Palaeeudyptes marplesi
Marples' Penguin was a large species of the extinct penguin genus Palaeeudyptes. It stood between 105 and 145 cm high in life, larger than the present Emperor Penguin. The precise relationship between this species and the slightly smaller Narrow-flippered Penguin from somewhat younger rocks is...
among the largest penguin species known. It was the last known Palaeeudyptes species, and although the exact time when it lived is not precisely determined, it may have evolved from P. marplesi, or they might even have been a single species which slightly decreased in size over time.
P. antarcticus was the first fossil penguin to become known to science. It was described from a single, slightly damaged, tarsometatarsus
Tarsometatarsus
The tarsometatarsus is a bone that is found in the lower leg of certain tetrapods, namely birds.It is formed from the fusion of several bones found in other types of animals, and homologous to the mammalian tarsal and metatarsal bones...
(BM
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
A.1084) found in the Late Oligocene
Oligocene
The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
Otekaike Limestone (23-28, possibly up to 34 MYA) at Kakanui
Kakanui
The small town of Kakanui lies on the coast of Otago, in New Zealand, fourteen kilometres to the south of Oamaru. The Kakanui River and its estuary divide the township in two. The part of the settlement south of the river, also known as Kakanui South, formerly "Campbells Bay", was developed as a...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. An older date seems quite possible in fact as other bones have now been recovered from the Late Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
(34-37 MYA) of the La Meseta Formation on Seymour Island
Seymour Island
Seymour Island is an island in the chain of 16 major islands around the tip of the Graham Land on the Antarctic Peninsula. Graham Land is closer to continental land mass than any other part of that Antarctica. It lies within the section of the island chain that resides off the west side of the...
, Antarctica (Tambussi et al., 2006), but given the considerable distances in age and range involved, it is not completely certain that the bones belong to a single species.
This remains the only fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
unequivocally assigned to this species, but numerous other bones have been found that may belong to it too. These fossils were once uncritically considered as being from P. antarcticus, merely because other large penguins were not known at that time, but have not been subject to scientific review according to modern standards. While some of these bones are now known to belong to other species, a large number are not unequivocally assignable to either P. antarcticus or P. marplesi, being intermediate in size (Simpson, 1971), lending support to the theory that these taxa were in reality a single species.