Skip to main content

Late Miocene rails (Aves: Rallidae) from southwestern Russia

Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments volume 97, pages 791–805 (2017)Cite this article

Abstract

The Miocene was an important period for the assembly of present-day avian faunas of the North Temperate Zone. Details of this process, however, remain largely unexplored due to the scarcity of diverse late Miocene avian localities throughout the Eurasian continent. Here, we present a survey of the osteological diversity of extant rails and, based on these results, assess the diversity of rails from the late Miocene (7.5–7.1 Ma) locality Morskaya-2 in the south of European Russia. We document three taxa, two of which are described as Crexica crexica gen. et sp. nov. and Miohypotaenidia tanaisensis gen. et sp. nov. These taxa show affinities with the modern species Crex crex and Hypotaenidia (Gallirallus) philippensis respectively and thus may represent the oldest records of the Crex and Hypotaenidia-Gallirallus lineages in the fossil record. The taxonomic composition of rails from Morskaya-2 locality considerably differs from that observed at the roughly coeval locality Polgárdi in Hungary, which likely reflects palaeogeographic differences during the late Miocene in Europe. Although Central Europe was already inhabited by modern-type rails in the late Miocene, more ancestral groups were present in the East. Some other aspects of the evolution of the modern fauna of Rallidae are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

References

  • Baumel, J. J., & Witmer, L. M. (1993). Osteologia. In J. J. Baumel, A. S. King, J. E. Breazile, H. E. Evans, & J. C. Vanden Berge (Eds.), Handbook of avian anatomy: Nomina Anatomica Avium (2nd ed., pp. 45–132). Cambridge: Nuttall Ornithological Club.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bernor, R. L., Fahlbusch, V., Andrews, P., & De Bruijn, H. (1996). The evolution of western Eurasian Neogene faunas: a chronologic, systematic, biogeographic, and paleoenvironmental synthesis. In R. L. Bernor, V. Fahlbusch, & H. W. Mittmann (Eds.), The evolution of western Eurasian Miocene mammal faunas (pp. 449–469). New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blondel, J., & Mourer-Chauviré, C. (1998). Evolution and history of the western Palaearctic avifauna. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 13, 488–492.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boev, Z. N., & Kovachev, D. (2007). Euroceros bulgaricus gen. nov., sp. nov. from Hadzhidimovo (SW Bulgaria) (Late Miocene)—the first European record of Hornbills (Aves: Coraciiformes). Geobios, 40, 39–49.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boev, Z. N., & Spassov, N. (2009). First record of ostriches (Aves, Struthioniformes, Struthionidae) from the Late Miocene of Bulgaria with taxonomic and zoogeographic discussion. Geodiversitas, 31, 493–507.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burchak-Abramovich, N. I. (1953). Iskopaemye strausy Kavkaza iyuga Ukrainy [Fossil ostriches of Caucasus and southern Ukraine]. Baku: Akademiya Nauk Azerbaidzhanskoi SSR (in Russian).

  • Burleigh, J. G., Kimball, R. T., & Braun, E. L. (2015). Building the avian tree of life using a large-scale, sparse supermatrix. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 84, 53–63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheneval, J. (2000). L'avifaune de Sansan. In Ginsburg L (ed) La faune miocène de Sansan et son environnement. Memories du Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, 183, 321–388.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cracraft, J. (1973). Systematics and evolution of the Gruiformes (class Aves). 3. Phylogeny of the suborder Grues. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 151, 1–128.

    Google Scholar 

  • De Pietri, V. L. (2013). Interrelationships of the Threskiornithidae and the phylogenetic position of the Miocene ibis ‘Plegadis’ paganus from the Saint-Gérand-le-Puy area in central France. Ibis, 155, 544–560.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Pietri, V. L., & Mayr, G. (2012). An assessment of the diversity of Early Miocene Scolopaci (Aves, Charadriiformes) from Saint-Gérand-le-Puy (Allier, France). Palaeontology, 55, 1177–1197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Pietri, V. L., & Mayr, G. (2014a). The phylogenetic relationships of the Early Miocene stork Grallavis edwardsi, with comments on the interrelationships of living Ciconiidae (Aves). Zoologica Scripta, 43, 576–585.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Pietri, V. L., & Mayr, G. (2014b). Reappraisal of Early Miocene rails (Aves, Rallidae) from central France: diversity and character evolution. Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research, 52, 312–322.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Pietri, V. L., Costeur, L., Güntert, M., & Mayr, G. (2011). A revision of Lari (Aves, Charadriiformes) from the Early Miocene of Saint-Gérand-le-Puy. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 31, 812–828.

  • Dickinson, E. C., & Remsen, J. V. (Eds.). (2013). The Howard and Moore complete checklist of the birds of the world, volume 1: non-passerines. Eastbourne, U.K.: Aves Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elzanowski, A., Bieńkowska-Wasiluk, M., Chodyń, R., & Bogdanowicz, W. (2012). Anatomy of the coracoid and diversity of the Procellariiformes (Aves) in the Oligocene of Europe. Palaeontology, 55, 1199–1221.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fain, M. G., Krajewski, C., & Houde, P. (2007). Phylogeny of “core Gruiformes” (Aves: Grues) and resolution of the Limpkin–Sungrebe problem. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 43, 515–529.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garcia-R, J. C., Gibb, G. C., & Trewick, S. A. (2014). Deep global evolutionary radiation in birds: diversification and trait evolution in the cosmopolitan bird family Rallidae. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 81, 96–108.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Göhlich, U. B. (2002). The avifauna of the Miocene Fossil-Lagerstatte Sandelzhausen (Bavaria, southern Germania). Zitteliana, 22, 169–190.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hably, L. (2013). The Late Miocene flora of Hungary. Geologica Hungarica. Series Palaeontologica, 59, 1–175.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hackett, S. J., Kimball, R. T., Reddy, S., Bowie, R. C. K., Braun, E. L., Braun, M. J., et al. (2008). A phylogenomic study of birds reveals their evolutionary history. Science, 320, 1763–1768.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hilgen, F. J., Lourens, L. J., Van Dam, J. A., Beu, A. G., Boyes, A. F., Cooper, R. A., et al. (2012). The Neogene period. In F. M. Gradstein, M. D. Ogg, J. G. Schmitz, & G. M. Ogg (Eds.), The Geologic Time Scale (pp. 923–978). Boston: Elsevier.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Jánossy, D. (1991). Late Miocene bird remains from Polgárdi (W-Hungary). Aquila, 98, 13–35.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kessler, J. (2013). A Kárpát-medence madárvilágának őslénytani kézikönyv. Miskolc: Könyvmühel.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kirchman, J. J. (2012). Speciation of flightless rails on islands: a DNA-based phylogeny of the typical rails of the Pacific. The Auk, 129, 56–69.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kurochkin, E. N. (1980). Middle Pliocene rails from Western Mongolia. Contributions in Science. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, 330, 69–73.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kurochkin, E. N. (1985). Birds of the Central Asia in Pliocene. Transactions of the Joint Soviet-Mongolian Paleontological Expedition, 26, 1–120.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kurochkin, E. N., & Ganea, I. M. (1972). Birds from the Late Sarmatian of Moldavia. In Vertebrates of the Neogene and Pleistocene of Moldavia (pp. 45–70). Chisinau: Shtiintsa (in Russian).

    Google Scholar 

  • Kurochkin, Y. N., & Lungu, A. N. (1970). A new ostrich from the middle Sarmatian of Moldavia. Paleontological Journal, 4, 103–111.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lambrecht, K. (1933). Handbuch der Palaeornithologie. Berlin: Gebrüder Borntraeger.

    Google Scholar 

  • Livezey, B. C. (1998). A phylogenetic analysis of the Gruiformes (Aves) based on morphological characters, with an emphasis on the rails (Rallidae). Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society London B, 353, 2077–2151.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Livezey, B. C. (2003). Evolution of flightlessness in rails (Gruiformes: Rallidae): phylogenetic, ecomorphological, and ontogenetic perspectives. Ornithological Monographs no. 53. Washington, DC: American Ornithologists’ Union.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayr, G. (2009). Paleogene fossil birds. Heidelberg: Springer 262 pp.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Mayr, G. (2010). Mousebirds (Coliiformes), parrots (Psittaciformes), and other small birds from the late Oligocene/early Miocene of the Mainz Basin, Germany. Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie – Abhandlungen, 258, 129–144.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayr, G. (2011). Metaves, Mirandornithes, Strisores and other novelties—a critical review of the higher-level phylogeny of neornithine birds. Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research, 49, 58–76.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayr, G. (2015). Cranial and vertebral morphology of the straight-billed Miocene phoenicopteriform bird Palaelodus and its evolutionary significance. Zoologischer Anzeiger, 254, 18–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayr, G., & Bochenski, Z. (2016). A skeleton of a small rail from the Rupelian of Poland adds to the diversity of early Oligocene Ralloidea. Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie – Abhandlungen, 282, 125–134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayr, G., & Smith, R. I. (2001). Ducks, rails, and limicoline waders (Aves: Anseriformes, Gruiformes, Charadriiformes) from the lowermost Oligocene of Belgium. Geobios, 34, 547–561.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mirzaie Ataabadi, M., Liu, L., Eronen, J., Bernor, R. L., & Fortelius, M. (2013). Continental-scale patterns in Neogene mammal community evolution and biogeography: a Europe-Asia perspective. In X. Wang, J. J. Flynn, & M. Fortelius (Eds.), Fossil mammals of Asia. Neogene biostratigraphy and chronology (pp. 629–655). New-York: Columbia University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Mlíkovský, J. (2002). Cenozoic birds of the world. Part 1: Europe. Praha: Ninox press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mourer-Chauviré, C. (1995). Dynamics of the avifauna during the Paleogene and the Early Neogene of France. Settling of the recent fauna. Acta Zoologica Cracoviensia, 38, 325–342.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mourer-Chauviré, C., Peyrouse, J. B., & Hugueney, M. (2013). A new roller (Aves: Coraciiformes s. s.: Coraciidae) from the Early Miocene of the Saint-Gérand-le-Puy area, Allier, France. In Göhlich, U. B., & Kroh, A. (Eds.), Paleornithological Research 2013. Proceed. 8th International Meeting Society of Avian Paleontology and Evolution (pp. 81–92). Wien: Verlag Naturhistorisches Museum Wien.

  • Olson, S. L. (1973). A classification of the Rallidae. Wilson Bulletin, 85, 381–416.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olson, S. L. (1977). A synopsis of the fossil Rallidae. In S. D. Ripley (Ed.), Rails of the world. A monograph of the family Rallidae (pp. 339–373). Boston. Massachusetts: David R. Godine.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pound, M. J., Haywood, A. M., Salzmann, U., & Riding, J. B. (2012). Global vegetation dynamics and latitudinal temperature gradients during the Mid to Late Miocene (15.97–5.33 Ma). Earth-Science Reviews, 112, 1–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Prum, R. O., Berv, J. S., Dornburg, A., Field, D. J., Townsend, J. P., Lemmon, E. M., & Lemmon, A. R. (2015). A comprehensive phylogeny of birds (Aves) using targeted next-generation DNA sequencing. Nature, 526, 569–573.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruan, L., Wang, Y., Hu, J., & Ouyang, Y. (2012). Polyphyletic origin of the genus Amaurornis inferred from molecular phylogenetic analysis of rails. Biochemical Geneticss, 1, 1–8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sánchez Marco, A. (2004). Avian zoogeographical patterns during the quaternary in the Mediterranean region and paleoclimatic interpretation. Ardeola, 51, 91–132.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steadman, D. W. (2006). Extinction and biogeography of tropical Pacific birds (pp. 1–480). Chicago: University Of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, B. (1998). Rails. A guide to the rails, crakes, gallinules and coots of the world (pp. 1–600). New Heaven and London: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Titov, V. V., & Tesakov, A. S. (2013). Late Miocene (Turolian) vertebrate faunas from Southern European Russia. In X. Wang, J. J. Flynn, & M. Fortelius (Eds.), Fossil mammals of Asia. Neogene biostratigraphy and chronology (pp. 538–545). New York: Columbia University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Titov, V. V., Tesakov, A. S., Danilov, I. G., Danukalova, G. A., Mashchenko, E. N., Panteleev, A. V., Sotnikova, M. V., & Sychevskaya, E. K. (2006). The first representative vertebrate fauna from the Late Miocene of southern European Russia. Doklady Biological Sciences, 411, 508–509.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vangengeim, E. A., Lungu, A. N., & Tesakov, A. S. (2006). Age of the Vallesian lower boundary (Continental Miocene of Europe). Stratigraphy. Geological Correlation, 14, 655–667.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Worthy, T. H., & Lee, M. S. Y. (2008). Affinities of Miocene waterfowl (Anatidae: Manuherikia, Dunstanetta and Miotadorna) from the St Bathans Fauna, New Zealand. Palaeontology, 51, 677–708.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zelenkov, N. V. (2011). Ardea sytchevskayae sp. nov., a new heron species (Aves: Ardeidae) from the middle Miocene of Mongolia. Paleontological Journal, 45, 572–579.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zelenkov, N. V. (2012). A new duck from the middle Miocene of Mongolia, with comments on Miocene evolution of ducks. Paleontological Journal, 46, 520–530.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zelenkov, N. V. (2013a). Cenozoic phoenicopteriform birds from Central Asia. Paleontological Journal, 47, 1323–1330.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zelenkov, N. V. (2013b). New finds and revised taxa of Early Pliocene birds from Western Mongolia. In Göhlich, U. B. & Kroh, A.(Eds.), Paleornithological Research 2013. Proceed. 8th International Meeting Society of Avian Paleontology and Evolution (pp. 153–170). Wien: Verlag Naturhistorisches Museum Wien.

  • Zelenkov, N. V. (2016). Evolution of bird communities in the Neogene of Central Asia, with a review of the Neogene fossil record of Asian birds. Paleontological Journal, 50, 1421–1433.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zelenkov, N. V. (2017). Revision of non-passeriform birds from Polgárdi (Hungary, Upper Miocene). 3. Neoaves. Paleontological Journal, 51, in press.

  • Zelenkov, N. V., & Kurochkin, E. N. (2012). Dabbling ducks (Aves: Anatidae) from the middle Miocene of Mongolia. Paleontological Journal, 46, 421–429.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zelenkov, N. V., & Kurochkin, E. N. (2015). Class Aves. In E. N. Kurochkin, A. V. Lopatin, & N. V. Zelenkov (Eds.), Fossil vertebrates of Russia and adjacent countries. Fossil reptiles and birds. Part 3 (pp. 86–290). GEOS: Moscow (in Russian).

    Google Scholar 

  • Zelenkov, N. V., & Panteleyev, A. V. (2015). Three bird taxa (Aves: Anatidae, Phasianidae, Scolopacidae) from the Late Miocene of the Sea of Azov (Southwestern Russia). Paläontologische Zeitschrift, 89, 515–527.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zelenkov, N.V., Boev, Z., & Lazaridis, G. (2016a). A large ergilornithine (Aves, Gruiformes) from the Late Miocene of the Balkan peninsula. Paläontologische Zeitschrift, 90, 145--151.

  • Zelenkov, N. V., Volkova, N. V., & Gorobets, L. V. (2016b). Late Miocene buttonquails (Charadriiformes, Turnicidae) from the temperate zone of Eurasia. Journal of Ornithology, 157, 85–92.

Download references

Acknowledgements

We are greatly indebted to Gerald Mayr, Ronan Allain and Christine Lefèvre for access to comparative materials and to Gerald Mayr and Cécile Mourer-Chauviré for helpful reviews. The laboratory work of NVZ was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project 14-04-01223).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Borissiak Paleontological Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, Profsoyuznaya 123, Moscow, 117647, Russia

    Nikita V. Zelenkov

  2. Zoological Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, Universitetskaya nab. 1, St. Petersburg, Russia

    Andrey V. Panteleyev

  3. Canterbury Museum, Rolleston Ave., Christchurch, 8013, New Zealand

    Vanesa L. De Pietri

Authors
  1. Nikita V. Zelenkov
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Andrey V. Panteleyev
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Vanesa L. De Pietri
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nikita V. Zelenkov.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

This article is registered in Zoobank under urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:C55AF2AB-0CE6-4395-A785-6FBD8DDBE7EE

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Zelenkov, N.V., Panteleyev, A.V. & De Pietri, V.L. Late Miocene rails (Aves: Rallidae) from southwestern Russia. Palaeobio Palaeoenv 97, 791–805 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12549-017-0276-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12549-017-0276-1

Keywords

  • Rallidae
  • Late Miocene
  • Eastern Europe
  • Northern Black Sea Region
  • Palaeobiogeography