PBDB Taxon

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Neilus sansomae

Reptilia - Charadriiformes

Taxonomy

Neilus sansomae was named by De Pietri et al. (2016). Its type specimen is NMNZ S.52628, a limb element (omal extremity of left coracoid), and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is Manuherikia River site, Saint Bathans, Home Hills Station, HH1a, which is in an Altonian lacustrine - large sandstone/claystone in the Bannockburn Formation of New Zealand. It is the type species of Neilus.

Year	Name and author
2016	Neilus sansomae De Pietri et al.

Diagnosis

Reference	Diagnosis
V. L. De Pietri et al. 2016	Much smaller than extant sheathbills, smaller than the Magellanic Plover (Table 1), and about the size of the Oriental Plover Charadrius veredus. Other than the features already listed for Charadrii and Chionoidea, it is distinguished by the following combination of features: Coracoid with (1) ventral outline of facies articularis clavicularis facing markedly medially; Figure 1G); (2) ventromedial surface of the tuberculum bra- chiale with two distinct ligamental insertion areas: a large and deep one ventromedially, and a smaller and shallower one craniodorsally, both separated by an area about the size of the larger depression (Figure 1A); (3) dorsal area between the facies articularis humeralis and the facies articularis clavicularis craniosternally broad and equally deep mediolaterally and omo-sternally (Figure 1F); (4) impressio ligamenti acrocoracohumer- alis as wide as it is long (Figure 1H); (5) area underneath the facies articularis clavicularis only very shallowly excavated (Figure 1E); (6) foramen nervi supracoracoidei situated close to the cotyla scapularis, separated from the sternal margin of the cotyla scapularis by a distance less than the maximum diameter of the foramen (Figure 1F). Humerus with: (7) prominent tuberculum supracondylare ventrale, adjacent to the ventral rim of the facet for the ligamentum collaterale ventrale (Figure 2D). Tarsometatarsus with: (8) plantar surface of trochlea metatarsi III long proximodistally (Figure 2L); (9) foramen vas- culare distale situated close to the incisura intertrochlearis (area between the two smaller than the proximodistal width of foramen vasculare distale; Figure 2L). [Note that the humerus and tarsometatarsus are only tentatively referred to N. sansomae]. Character (1) is more pronounced in N. sansomae than in other chionoideans. Neilus sansomae also differs from P. socialis and species of Chionis in (5), (6) and (8) (Character [8] is however present in the closely related burhinids). It agrees with species of Chionis, but not with P. socialis in (3), (4) and (9). It differs from Chionis albus in (2) and (7).

Measurements

No measurements are available