Primer registro de pelícano (Aves: Pelecanidae) para el Mioceno tardío de la formación Pisco, Perú

Abstract

A fossil quadrate bone referred to the genus Pelecanus is described. This fossil comes from the Montemar deposit of the Pisco Formation in the South-Central coast of Perú (Arequipa region). Comparison with the extant species Pelecanus thagus and P. occidentalis and the fossil P. schreiberi from the Pliocene of North America is also made. This is the first fossil pelican from the Peruvian coast. The fossil bird assemblage from the Pisco Formation is also analyzed, concluding that the species that are currently endemic to the Peruvian current were already present since at least the Late Miocene (6 Ma).

Keywords

• Peru
• Pisco Formation
• Pelecanus
• Late Miocene