Minutornis (meaning "tiny bird") is an extinct genus of parapasserine bird from the Early EoceneLondon Clay Formation of Essex, United Kingdom. The genus contains a single species, M. primoscenoides, known from a fragmentary skeleton.[1]
In 1998, German paleontologist Gerald Mayr incorrectly assigned the fossil material to Primoscens minutus. In 2022, Gerald Mayr and British zoologist Andrew C. KitchenerdescribedMinutornis primoscenoides, a new genus and species of parapasserine, based on these fossil remains. The generic name, "Minutornis", combines the Latin word "minutus", meaning "tiny" with the Greek word "ornis", meaning "bird". The specific name, "primoscenoides", references the extinct bird Primoscens which shares some anatomical similarities. It also references the fact that the fossil material was initially described as belonging to Primoscens.[1]
Classification
Mayr and Kitchener (2022) recovered Minutornis as closely related to the Parapasseres, which is the clade containing zygodactylids and crown group Passeriformes, in their phylogenetic analyses. In their description of the new genus and species they placed Minutornis in Parapasseres incertae sedis.[clarification needed] Their results are shown in the cladogram below:[1]
