Intiornis

Intiornis (meaning "Inti bird", the binominal naming means "Unexpected Sun bird"^[1]) is an extinct genus of avisaurid enantiornithean birds which existed in what is now North-West Argentina during the late Cretaceous period (Campanian age).^[2]

Intiornis Temporal range: Campanian ~75 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
The holotype partial hind limb of Intiornis
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Clade:	Dinosauria
Clade:	Saurischia
Clade:	Theropoda
Clade:	Avialae
Clade:	†Enantiornithes
Family:	†Avisauridae
Genus:	†Intiornis Novas et al. 2010
Species:	†I. inexpectatus
Binomial name
†Intiornis inexpectatus Novas et al. 2010

Description

The genus is known from a partial hind limb found in beds of the Upper Cretaceous Las Curtiembres Formation. Three primary toes on a limb of Intiornis are nearly the same length.^[1] It was named by Fernando Emilio Novas, Federico Lisandro Agnolín and Carlos Agustín Scanferla in 2010, and the type species is Intiornis inexpectatus. With the body length of around 15 cm (5.9 in)^[1] Intiornis was the size of a sparrow, thus representing the smallest enantiornithes known from South America. Its closest relative was Soroavisaurus from the Lecho Formation (Maastrichtian age) of northwestern Argentina.^[2]

Phylogeny

The cladogram below is from Wang et al., 2022:^[3]

Enantiornithes

Cruralispennia Protopteryx Elsornis Flexomornis Longipterygidae Iberomesornis bh bh Longirostravis Rapaxavis Euenantiornithes c e Sinornis e Enantiornis Halimornis Concornis Neuquenornis c b Eoalulavis Liaoningornis Gobipteryx Hebeiornis Eocathayornis Qiliania Avisauridae Intiornis Soroavisaurus Avisaurus Gettyia n Mirarce e Feitianius fn Longusunguis fn n Dunhuangia fn Musivavis Pengornithidae Pengornis m Yuanchuavis Eopengornis Parapengornis m Grabauornis Parvavis Cratoavis Gretcheniao Huoshanornis Shengjingornis Zhouornis Bohaiornithidae Bohaiornis ij Eoenantiornis Fortunguavis Mystiornis Shenqiornis Sulcavis

l

Key to letters:

b = Boluochia
c = Cathayornis
e = Enantiophoenix
f = Houornis
h = Longipteryx
i = Parabohaiornis
j = Pterygornis
l = Vorona
m = Yuanjiawaornis
n = Yungavolucris

Paleobiology

Long toes of equal length and large curved claws suggest adaptability for perching.^[1]