''Zeltornis'' ("Zelten bird") is an extinct

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

heron Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...

. It contains a single species, ''Zeltornis ginsburgi''. ''Zeltornis'' probably resembled the modern night herons, but was much larger, standing 2 m (6 ft 8 in) tall and weighing about 15 kg. Its wingspan is estimated at 2.50 m (8 ft 4 in). It is known from a single right

coracoid A coracoid is a paired bone which is part of the shoulder assembly in all vertebrates except therian mammals (marsupials and placentals). In therian mammals (including humans), a coracoid process is present as part of the scapula, but this is n ...

of which the

distal Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position provi ...

part is missing (

MNHN The French National Museum of Natural History ( ; abbr. MNHN) is the national natural history museum of France and a of higher education part of Sorbonne University. The main museum, with four galleries, is located in Paris, France, within the ...

collection, uncatalogued). Nonetheless, the partial bone is distinctive enough to place the species clearly into the heron

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

. In particular it seems to have been allied most closely to the night herons, although it cannot have been a direct ancestor of extant species because the modern genus '' Nycticorax'' did already exist in the

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that defin ...

. ''Zeltornis'' is named after the

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

Zelten in

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

, where it was found.

References

* Balouet, Jean Christophe (1981): ''Zeltornis ginsburgi'', n.g. n.sp. (Ardeidae, Aves), Héron géant du Miocène inférieur du Djebel Zelten (Libye). ''Comptes Rendus des Séances de l'Académie des Sciences (Paris)'' 293: 235–239. rticle in French* Mlíkovský, Jiří (2003): Early Miocene birds of Djebel Zelten, Libya. ''Časopis Národního muzea, Řada přírodovědná (J. Nat. Mus., Nat. Hist. Ser.)'' 172: 114–120
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Ardeidae Bird genera Herons Miocene birds Cenozoic birds of Africa Fossil taxa described in 1981 Taxa named by Jean-Christophe Balouet {{Pelecaniformes-stub