The Prehistoric Park Animal Field Guide Volume 1

by WildExpert24

As a Prehistoric Park employee, you get the privilege to work with the likes of previously extinct animals. However, if you want to survive longer than five minutes, then you need to have knowledge of its inhabitants. From the world of Cartoon's Prehistoric Park, this Guide will give you info on behavior, diet, lifespan, and more. Welcome to the Ultimate Prehistoric Guidebook.

39. Brodavis

Brodavis

Scientific Classification

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Clade: Dinosauria

Clade: Saurischia

Clade: Theropoda

Clade: Avialae

Clade: Hesperornithes

Family: Brodavidae

Genus: Brodavis

Type Species: Brodavis americanus meaning "Brodkorb's Bird."

Described by Larry D. Martin, Evgeny N. Kurochkin, and Tim T. Tokaryk, 2012.

Species:

-Brodavis americanus, (American Brodkorb's Bird), Martin et al., 2012.

-Brodavis baileyi, (Bailey's Brodkorb's Bird), Martin et al., 2012.

-Brodavis mongoliensis, (Mongolian Brodkorb's Bird), Martin et al., 2012.

-Brodavis varneri, (Varner's Brodkorb's Bird)(?), (Martin & Cordes-Person, 2007).

Synonym:

-"Baptornis" varneri, (Martin & Cordes-Person, 2007).

Current Park Population: (18; all adults; 9 male, 9 female)

Park Diet: dead and often frozen fish, supplemented with sliced pieces of fish.

Natural Diet: Fish, Crustaceans, invertebrates, and amphibians.

Lifespan: 20 years

Habitat: Rivers, Streams, Waterways, Ponds, Lakes, Creeks, Floodplains, Swamps, Estuaries, and Coastal Shores.

Native Ecosystem: Western North America, on what was then an island continent known as Laramidia. Hell Creek Formation, Frenchman Formation, Sharon Springs Formation, lower Pierre Shale, South Dakota, USA, Canada, Nemegt Formation, and Mongolia, 80.5-66 Million Years Ago, Late Cretaceous, Maastrichtian Stage.

Breeding Season: April and August.

Gestation Period: Four-Six Weeks.

Eggs Laid: 3-7 Eggs

Hatching Time: Four-Seven Weeks.

Danger Level: 2 out of 10.

Summary: True birds appeared from the offshoot of theropod dinosaurs either during the Early Cretaceous or the Early Late Cretaceous. One Group of ancient birds is the Hesperornithes. Famous members of this group, like Hesperornis, are large, flightless, seagoing animals. Brodavis however, being a small and primitive member of this group, retains wings and is still able to fly. Despite this, it still spends most of its time on the water, diving for fish."

History of Discovery: It was first described and named by Larry D. Martin, Evgeny N. Kurochkin, and Tim T. Tokaryk in 2012 and assigned to a new monogeneric family, Brodavidae. Four species were described and assigned to Brodavis.

Description:

Brodavis baileyi

Adults are covered in gray feathers with their wings black-tipped and tails with a barred black stripe ending with white tips, the white underbelly had black spots, bronze yellow webbed feet and beak ending with a black-tipped hook, black marking stripe around the eyes, and reddish-orange earrings.

Chicks are mostly covered in grayish-brown downy fluff feathers, pale beaks, and webbed feet.

Brodavis is considered to be the first freshwater and latest record of the order Hesperornithiformes. Although hesperornithiformes probably lost their flight abilities by the end of the Early Cretaceous, minimal pachyostosis in Brodavis suggests the possibility of some volant abilities.

A unique feature that Brodavis had was its capabilities of limited flight, a feature not seen in most other hesperornitheans.

Size: They measure at Length 10-20cm, with a wingspan of 30cm.

Classification:

The type species, Brodavis americanus, is known from the holotype left metatarsal, RSM P 2315.1 which was collected in the Maastrichtian-age Frenchman Formation of Canada.

Brodavis baileyi is known from the holotype left metatarsal, UNSM 50665, which was collected in the Maastrichtian-age Hell Creek Formation of South Dakota, United States (dated between 66.8 and 66 Ma ago)

Brodavis mongoliensis is known from the holotype left metatarsal, PIN 4491-8, which was collected in the Maastrichtian-age Nemegt Formation of Mongolia.

Brodavis varneri has originally named a second species of Baptornis by James Martin and Amanda Cordes-Person in 2007. It is based on the holotype left tarsometatarsal SDSM 68430 which was collected in the Campanian-age Sharon Springs Formation, lower Pierre Shale of southwestern South Dakota (dated between 81.5 and 80.5 million years ago.). "Baptornis" varneri might represent a fourth species of Brodavis or belong to a separate genus.

Social Behavior: They are mostly seen alone or in small groups, during the abundance of prey they can form large flocks and they gather together in large colonies during the breeding season.

Diet: It was semi-aquatic like its other relatives and presumably caught and ate fish, crustaceans, and small amphibians.

Interactions with other species: Brodavis do face predators on land Pectinodon, Dromaeosaurus, Acheroraptor, and juvenile T. Rex, and in the water, Borealosuchus, Thoracosaurus, Champsosaurus, Brachychampsa, Didelphodon, and even turtles like Axestemys that feed on chicks that fall off the nest.

Adults often retreat either by flight or diving in the water. Their paddle-like webbed feet and streamlined body help these birds dodge underwater predators.

Ankylosaurus, Triceratops, Torosaurus, Edmontosaurus, Denversaurus, and Alamosaurus that wade in the shallows often disturb fish allowing the brodavis to feed on the fleeing fish.

Occasionally they feed on the hatchlings of Axestemys, Basilemys, Borealosuchus, Thoracosaurus, Champsosaurus, and Brachychampsa, and frogs, Palaeobatrachus.

Extinction: Hesperornitheans were the only Mesozoic avialans to colonize the oceans. Unfortunately, They were wiped out in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, along with enantiornitheans and all other non-avian dinosaurs, and many other diverse plant and animal groups. This is due to the collapse of the Ocean and aquatic food webs caused by the die-off of phytoplankton that supports the base and Ocean acidification with the lack of aquatic prey lead to the extinction of Brodavis.

Danger Tip: Brodavis would fly away or dive into the water when approached, but when handled they can deliver painful pecks from their beaks.

Significant Events: These birds were seen perched on a log nearby a small river close to the main river during the team's Third Day of their Rescue Mission. Double D and Ed lured the birds with cans of tuna to the portal. They now reside in the Hell Creek Forest Building.

Hell Creek Forest Building Riverside habitat: This exhibit is meant to replicate the Cretaceous Riverside which is also a walk-through aviary. There is a riverbank for the turtles to bask and a large pool for the turtles to swim filled with aquatic plants and a small glass underwater viewing panel. There are also fallen logs and branches along small trees for the Brodavis to perch and build their nests, Brodavis shares its habitat with two species of turtles, Axestemys and Basilemys.

Conclusion: Brodavis is the first extinct avian bird to be brought to Prehistoric Park. Bird lovers would appreciate these semi-aquatic birds swimming in the water or perching on the logs to sun themselves on their next visit.

The Field Guide might take a long time, like structuring and writing descriptions of the creatures, but also my time in college and spending time with my family. So you can suggest additional information quotes, descriptions, and natural or speculative behaviors for the prehistoric animals that I can edit and you send your suggestions either in reviews or Private Messages.

Examples: Inferring what the toons are doodling on the sketches or snarking quotes.

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