PBDB Taxon

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Morphology	Ecology and taphonomy	External Literature Search	Age range and collections

Sula

Osteichthyes - Suliformes - Sulidae

Taxonomy

Sula was named by Brisson (1760) [Sepkoski's age data: T Ol-l R Sepkoski's reference number: 1066]. It is extant. It is the type genus of Sulidae, Suloidae.

It was assigned to Pelecaniformes by Olson (1985), Varricchio (2002), Sepkoski (2002); and to Sulidae by Hay (1902), Case (1904), Hay (1930), Lambrecht (1933), Howard (1936), Wetmore (1940), Brodkorb (1955), Wetmore (1956), Howard (1958), Brodkorb (1963), Howard (1972), Olson (1975), Olson and James (1982), Carroll (1988), Cheneval (1993), Stucchi (2003), del Hoyo et al. (2014), Stucchi et al. (2016), Clements et al. (2017).

Species

S. (Sula), S. brandi, S. clarki, S. dactylatra, S. figueroae, S. granti, S. guano, S. leucogaster, S. magna, S. nebouxii, S. phosphata, S. pohli, S. sula (syn. S. piscator), S. sulita, S. universitatis, S. variegata, S. willetti

Species lacking formal opinion data

S. dacylatra, S. hutchisoni

Synonyms

Sula guano was named by Brodkorb (1955). Its type specimen is Brodkorb 301, a limb element (left coracoid), and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is American Agricultural Chemical Company, Brodkorb Locality 2, which is in a Tortonian coastal sandstone in the Peace River Formation of Florida.

It was considered a nomen nudum by Stucchi (2003).
Sula phosphata was named by Brodkorb (1955). Its type specimen is Brodkorb 302, a limb element (right coracoid), and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is American Agricultural Chemical Company, Brodkorb Locality 2, which is in a Tortonian coastal sandstone in the Peace River Formation of Florida.

It was considered a nomen nudum by Stucchi (2003).
Dysporus was named by Illiger (1811). It is extant.

It was synonymized subjectively with Sula by Clements et al. (2017).

Synonymy list

Year	Name and author
1760	Sula Brisson
1811	Dysporus Illiger
1902	Sula Hay p. 532
1904	Sula Case p. 58
1930	Sula Hay p. 292
1933	Sula Lambrecht p. 284
1936	Sula Howard p. 213
1940	Sula Wetmore p. 11
1955	Sula phosphata Brodkorb p. 1 figs. Figs. 3, 6, 9
1955	Sula Brodkorb p. 9
1955	Sula guano Brodkorb p. 9 figs. Figs. 2, 5, 8
1956	Sula Wetmore p. 14
1956	Sula guano Wetmore p. 14
1956	Sula phosphata Wetmore p. 14
1958	Sula Howard p. 4
1963	Sula Brodkorb
1972	Sula Howard p. 6
1975	Sula Olson p. 23
1982	Sula Olson and James p. 33
1985	Sula Olson p. 158
1988	Sula Carroll
1993	Sula Cheneval p. 89
2002	Sula Sepkoski
2002	Sula Varricchio
2003	Sula Stucchi p. 77
2014	Sula del Hoyo et al.
2016	Sula Stucchi et al. p. 419
2017	Sula Clements et al.

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Rank	Name	Author
kingdom	Animalia	()
—	Bilateria
—	Eubilateria	Ax 1987
—	Deuterostomia
phylum	Chordata	Haeckel 1874
subphylum	Vertebrata
superclass	Gnathostomata
class	Osteichthyes
subclass	Sarcopterygii	()
subclass	Dipnotetrapodomorpha	(Nelson 2006)
subclass	Tetrapodomorpha	()
—	Tetrapoda
—	Reptiliomorpha
—	Anthracosauria
subclass	Amphibiosauria	Kuhn 1967
—	Cotylosauria	()
—	Amniota
—	Sauropsida
class	Reptilia
subclass	Eureptilia	()
—	Romeriida
—	Diapsida	()
—	Archosauromorpha	(Huene 1946)
—	Crocopoda

Rank	Name	Author
—	Archosauriformes	Gauthier 1986
—	Eucrocopoda
—	Archosauria	()
informal	Avemetatarsalia
—	Ornithodira
—	Dinosauromorpha
—	Dinosauriformes
—	Dinosauria	()
—	Saurischia	()
—	Theropoda	()
—	Neotheropoda
—	Averostra	Paul 2002
—	Tetanurae
—	Coelurosauria	()
—	Maniraptora
—	Paraves
class	Aves
subclass	Neornithes	Gadow 1893
—	Aequornithes
—	Feraequornithes
superorder	Pelecanimorphae	Huxley 1867
order	Suliformes	Sharpe 1891
family	Sulidae	Reichenbach 1849
genus	Sula	Brisson 1760

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

G. Sula Brisson 1760

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Subg. Sula (Sula) Brisson 1760

†Sula brandi Stucchi et al. 2016

†Sula clarki Chandler 1990

Sula dactylatra Lesson 1831 [masked booby]

Sula dactylatra tasmani van Tets et al. 1988

†Sula figueroae Stucchi et al. 2016

Sula granti Rothschild 1902 [Nazca booby]

Sula leucogaster Boddaert 1783 [brown booby]

†Sula magna Stucchi 2003

Sula nebouxii Milne-Edwards 1882 [Blue-footed booby]

†Sula pohli Howard 1958

Sula sula Linnaeus 1766 [red-footed booby]

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Invalid names: Sula piscator Linnaeus 1758 [synonym]

†Sula sulita Stucchi 2003

†Sula universitatis Brodkorb 1963

Sula variegata Tschudi 1843 [Peruvian booby]

†Sula willetti Miller 1925

Invalid names: Dysporus Illiger 1811 [synonym], Sula guano Brodkorb 1955 [nomen nudum], Sula phosphata Brodkorb 1955 [nomen nudum]

Diagnosis

No diagnoses are available

Measurements

No measurements are available

Composition:

hydroxyapatiteo

Entire body:

yeso

Adult length:

10 to < 100o

Adult width:

1.0 to < 10o

Adult height:

1.0 to < 10o

Architecture:

compact or denseo

Ontogeny:

accretion, modification of partso

Grouping:

solitaryo

Environment:

terrestrialo

Locomotion:

actively mobileo

Life habit:

ground dwellingo

Diet:

carnivoresubo

Reproduction:

oviparouso

Dispersal:

direct/internalo

Dispersal 2:

mobileo

Created:

2009-01-03 20:39:15

Modified:

2009-01-03 22:39:15

Source: subo = suborder, o = order

References: Kiessling 2004, Marsh 1875, Benton 1983

Age range

Maximum range based only on fossils: base of the Langhian to the top of the Holocene or 15.98000 to 0.00000 Ma
Minimum age of oldest fossil (stem group age): 13.82 Ma

Collections (102 total)

Time interval	Ma	Country or state	Original ID and collection number
Early/Lower Miocene - Middle Miocene	23.04 - 11.63	USA (Florida)	S. universitatis (155057)
Burdigalian - Langhian	20.45 - 13.82	Mexico (Baja California)	S. sp. (197288)
Langhian	15.98 - 13.82	Mexico (Baja California)	S. sp. (52183)
Langhian	15.98 - 13.82	USA (California)	S. hutchisoni (197289) S. sp. (59060) S. willetti (19595)
Langhian	15.98 - 13.82	Japan (Saitama)	S. sp. (54183)
Middle Miocene	15.98 - 11.63	USA (California)	S. pohli (126054)
Tortonian	11.63 - 7.246	USA (Florida)	S. guano, S. phosphata (122351)
Tortonian	11.63 - 7.246	USA (California)	S. willetti (45489 52184 82517)
Tortonian	11.63 - 7.246	Peru	S. magna (183918) S. sp. (45486) S. sp., S. brandi, S. figueroae (96800)
Tortonian	11.63 - 7.246	Peru (Arequipa)	S. sp., S. variegata (45485)
Late/Upper Miocene	11.63 - 5.333	Peru (Ica)	S. sp. (45487)
Tortonian - Messinian	11.63 - 5.333	Peru	S. sp. (46083)
Messinian	7.246 - 5.333	Peru	S. sp. (13079)
Messinian	7.246 - 5.333	Chile (Atacama)	S. sp. (55535)
Messinian	7.246 - 5.333	Peru (Caraveli)	S. sp., S. magna, S. sulita, S. variegata (46084)
Zanclean	5.333 - 3.6	South Africa	S. sp. (100313)
Blancan	4.7 - 1.4	USA (California)	S. clarki (178005 178017) S. sp. (177986 178019 178021)
Piacenzian	3.6 - 2.58	Peru	S. sp. (219058)
Middle Pleistocene	0.774 - 0.129	USA (California)	S. willetti (52242)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Norfolk Island	S. dactylatra (194562 194563 194565 194566 194567) S. tasmani (194991 194992 194993 194994)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Australia (New South Wales)	S. tasmani (194989 194990)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Brazil	S. sp. (195071)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Marshall Islands	S. spp. (194995 194999)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	American Samoa	S. sula (193800)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Micronesia, Federated States of	S. spp., S. dactylatra (194650) S. sula (194651)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Pitcairn	S. dactylatra (193763 193786 193790) S. dactylatra, S. sula (193764) S. sula (193793)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	French Polynesia	S. sp., S. sula, S. leucogaster (194675)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Solomon Islands	S. dacylatra (209083) S. sp. (209059 209071 209073 209086 209087 209098) S. sp., S. dactylatra (209085) S. sp., S. sula (209061 209079 209095 209099) S. sp., S. sula, S. leucogaster (209094 209096) S. sula (209062 209064 209065 209066 209069 209070) S. sula, S. leucogaster (209060 209067)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	French Polynesia (Society Islands)	S. sula, S. leucogaster (215325)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Virgin Islands, U.S.	S. dactylatra, S. leucogaster, S. piscator (132605) S. leucogaster (241343) S. leucogastra (28879) S. piscator (38847)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Bahamas	S. leucogaster (145366)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Vanuatu (Efate)	S. leucogaster (185434)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Mauritius	S. sula (194074)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Venezuela	S. sp. (197933) S. sp., S. sula (197931 197932 197934 197937) S. sp., S. sula, S. leucogaster (197935)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Cook Islands	S. sula (193449)
Holocene	0.0117 - 0.0	Saint Helena	S. dactylatra (176072 194214 194220 194290) S. dactylatra, S. sula (176075 194278 194291) S. sp. (194221 194225 194238) S. sula (155782 194226 194287)