Messelornithidae

Messelornithidae is an extinct clade of gruiform birds, closely related to modern rails.^[3][4][5] The fossil record are from the Paleocene to the early Oligocene of Europe and North America.^[2]

Messelornithidae Temporal range: 61.7–48.6 Ma[1] PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N Paleocene[2] - Early Oligocene
Fossil specimen of Messelornis
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Gruiformes
Family:	†Messelornithidae
Genera
Itardiornis Messelornis Nasiornis Parvirallus Pellornis

References

1. "†family Messelornithidae (bird)". Fossilworks.
2. Mourer-Chaviré C. (1995). "The Messelornithidae (Aves: Gruiformes) from the Paleogene of France". Courier Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg. 181: 95–105.
3. Mayr, Gerald (2004). "Phylogenetic relationships of the early Tertiary Messel rails (Aves, Messelornithidae)". Senckenbergiana Lethaea. 84 (1–2): 317–322. doi:10.1007/BF03043474. ISSN 0037-2110. S2CID 76649548. Retrieved 2021-02-19.
4. Mayr, Gerald (2009). Paleogene Fossil Birds. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-89628-9. ISBN 978-3-540-89627-2.
5. Morlo, Michael (2004). "Diet of Messelornis (Aves: Gruiformes), an Eocene bird from Germany". Courier Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg. 252: 29–33.