Conflicto antarcticus ("Contradiction") is a genus of stem-anseriform from the Paleocene Lopez de Bertodano Formation of Antarctica. Its name originates from the Latin word "conflictius," meaning "contradiction," in reference to the controversial systematic placement of this genus. It was capable of flight and had a slender body with elongated legs compared to its body, which is the opposite of the legs of modern ducks. It is closely related to the genus Anatalavis, suggesting that the duck-like beak of anseriforms must have developed during an early stage of their evolution. Conflicto represents one of the most complete non-marine Paleocene birds known from the Southern Hemisphere and shows that Neognathae had already diversified in the earliest Paleocene period.
Description[]
Conflicto is known from a single partially complete specimen described in January 2019. It had long legs compared to its body, contrasting what is seen in modern ducks. It is estimated to be around 36 centimeters (14 inches) in length, and had a long head relative to body size. Its beak had a similar structure to that of ducks and geese, but was not as wide. The rostrum possessed narial openings wider than that of modern Anseriformes. Its neck was about half its body length, possessing (estimated) 15 long vertebrae.
Classification[]
Conflicto was a likely a stem anseriform, equally related to the current extant clades. The genus Anatalavis is hypothesized to be less related to the magpie goose as previously thought, but placed as a sister clade to Conflicto, though this isn't conclusive. The phylogenetic classification remains uncertain, but is more likely to be stem-waterfowl rather than crown-waterfowl, separated from modern anseriform lineages.
Gallery[]
