Branta thessaliensis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Early registration for Wikimania 2008 is now open. Branta thessaliensis From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Branta thessaliensis Fossil range: Late Miocene, 7.5-6.8 mya Conservation status Not applicable (fossil) Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Anseriformes Family: Anatidae Genus: Branta Species: B. thessaliensis Binomial name Branta thessaliensis Boev & Koufos, 2006 Branta thessaliensis is a prehistoric species of black goose known from fossils found in Greece. It is among the earliest known members of its genus. Described in 2006, it was of similar size to the Canada verification needed Goose[ ]. It is known from a verification needed humerus bone[ ], which differs form file:///D|/BOEV%20ORIGINAL/AAABBBDDD/Branta%...20Wikipedia,%20the%20free%20encyclopedia.htm (1 of 4) [09.5.2008 г. 14:16:43] Branta thessaliensis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia the living species by a wider distal end of the diaphysis, a dorsal condyle that is more rounded in dorsal view and more prominent compared to the ventral condyle in distal view, and a deeper humerotricipital sulcus in distal view. The fossil was found in a Late Miocene (Middle Turolian: European Mammal Neogene stage MN12, 7.5-6.8 million years ago) deposit at Perivolaki in Thessaly, after which region the species was named. Both near-shore freshwater bodies and open grassland habitat were found in the Perivolaki area during MN12. The species provides further support for the distinctness of Branta from the Anser grey geese by that time. It also suggests that the present biogeography of Eurasian Branta - breeding at Arctic and wintering at Mediterranean latitudes - is a product of post-Miocene times, possibly due to range shifts during the ice age era. In this aspect it is notable that such a breeding-wintering range disjunction is less pronounced in the Canada and Cackling Geese of North America, where unlike in there was no W-E barrier (the Alpide belt) barring range shifts in response to the advancing ice. [edit] References ● Boev, Zlatozar N. & Koufos, George D. (2006): The late Miocene vertebrate locality of Perivolaki, Thessaly, Greece. 2. Aves. Palaeontographica A 276(1-6): 11- 22. Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Branta_thessaliensis" Categories: Invalid conservation status | Miocene birds | Branta Hidden categories: All pages needing cleanup | Wikipedia articles needing factual verification since August 2007 Views ● Article ● Discussion ● Edit this page ● History Personal tools ● Log in / create account file:///D|/BOEV%20ORIGINAL/AAABBBDDD/Branta%...20Wikipedia,%20the%20free%20encyclopedia.htm (2 of 4) [09.5.2008 г. 14:16:43] Branta thessaliensis - Wikispecies Branta thessaliensis From Wikispecies Jump to: navigation, search [edit] Taxonavigation Main Page Superregnum: Eukarya Regnum: Animalia Subregnum: Eumetazoa Superphylum: Deuterostomia Phylum: Chordata Subphylum: Vertebrata Infraphylum: Gnathostomata Superclassis: Tetrapoda Classis: Aves Subclassis: Carinatae Infraclassis: Neornithes Parvclassis: Neognathae Ordo: Anseriformes Familia: Anatidae Subfamilia: Anserinae Genus: Branta Species: Branta thessaliensis [edit] Name Branta thessaliensis Branta thessaliensis is of similar size to B. canadensis, but has wider distal end of diaphysis, more rounded condylus dorsalis in dorsal view of humeral bone, deeper sulcus humerotricipitalis in distal view, and the more prominent condylus dorsalis in relation to condylus ventralis in distal view. It was described from the locality of Perivolaki (Thessaly, Greece), which is the fifth Tertiary avian locality of Greece. The find came from the Middle Turolian deposits, MN 12 (late Miocene). B. thessaliensis is the fourth fossil anatid described from the Balkans (after Anser thraceiensis Burchak-Abramovich & Nikolov, 1984 Balcanas pliocaenica Boev, 1998 and Cygnus verae Boev, 2000). Its presence in the late Miocene indicates the ancient divergence of the “Anser-Branta complex http://species.wikimedia.org/wiki/Branta_thessaliensis (1 of 3)25.4.2007 •. 10:00 Branta thessaliensis - Wikispecies and confirms the hypothesis of the contemporaneous evolution of Anser and Branta even in the Miocene. The present more or less “Arctic-Mediterranean” (i. e. breeding-wintering) range of the Branta species was possibly more non-disjunctive during the late Miocene. Both, fresh-water bodies coastal, and the grassy open-land, habitats, existed in the surrounding of the locality. Bold text Retrieved from "http://species.wikimedia.org/wiki/Branta_thessaliensis" Views ● Article ● Discussion ● Edit ● History Personal tools ● Log in / create account Navigation ● Main Page ● Community portal ● Templates ● Recent changes ● Random page ● Help ● Donations Search Toolbox ● What links here ● Related changes ● Upload file ● Special pages ● Printable version http://species.wikimedia.org/wiki/Branta_thessaliensis (2 of 3)25.4.2007 •. 10:00.