Hou's Mesozoic Birds of China (New Genera)

[bh480@scn.org]

To: dinosaur@usc.edu
From: Ben Creisler bh480@scn.org
Subject: Hou's Mesozoic Birds of China (New Genera)

Since this material probably won't be posted on Dinosauria 
On-line in the immediate future (part of my fairly huge 
backlog of stuff in preparation), I thought I'd provide 
some additional information derived from my own laborious 
attempt at translating Hou's 1997 book. This material 
should supplement a posting by Jerry Harris many months 
back. Word has it that someone whose Chinese is much 
better than mind may do a full translation of the book--an 
undertakng for which I will be truly grateful!  I'll do a 
separate posting about Jibeinia--also described in Hou's 
book but still an unofficial name under the rules of 
nomenclature. Jibeinia looks as if it could be a very 
primitive enantiornithine, with metatarsals that are 
partially fused on the proximal side. However, I need to 
carefully translate the description of the scapula and 
coracoid to see if they fit the classific enantiornithine 
arrangement. Note that there are a number of problems with 
Hou's book, including nomenclatural inconsistencies and 
some messed up measurements--see the comments at the end.  
Here are the new genera (he describes some additional 
species for established taxa as well).

Cuspirostrisornis Hou, 1997 "pointed-rostrum bird"
KUH-spi-ros-tri-SOR-nis (Lat. cuspirostris "having a 
pointed rostrum" + Gr. ornis "bird") (m) referring to the 
long and slender rostrum on an enantiornithine toothed 
bird about the size of large sparrow; known from a 
complete, mostly articulated skeleton with skull 
(Holotype: IVPP V. 10897) found in the Jiufotang Formation 
at Boluochi, Chaoyang County, Liaoning Province, 
northeastern China.  Skull 2.7 cm long, 5 teeth on each 
side of the premaxillary and tip of lower jaws; lower jaw 
slender and straight; humerus 2.9 cm long, with large 
internal condyle; ulna 3.2 cm long; radius 2.95 long; 
sternum has manubium and relatively developed keel; femur 
2.73 cm long with large internal condyle; tibiotarsus 3.25 
cm long; tarsometatarsus 1.9 cm long; toe-claws large and 
recurved.    
Type Species: Cuspirostrisornis houi [HOH-ie] Hou 1997: 
for Hou Jifeng, senior engineer with the Institute of 
Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (Beijing). 
Enantiornithes Cuspirostrisornithidae Early Cretaceous (?
Barremian) China
(NOTE: The drawing of the skeleton of Cuspirostrisornis in 
Hou 1997 (pg. 155) has the scale indicated incorrectly--1 
cm bar should be 2 cm.) 

Largirostrornis Hou, 1997 "large-rostrum bird"
LAHR-ji-ros-TROR-nis (Lat. largus "large" + Lat. rostrum + 
Gr. ornis "bird") (m) referring to the large and long 
rostrum on an enantiornithine toothed bird about the size 
of a large sparrow; known from a fairly complete, 
partially articulated skeleton with skull (Holotype: IVPP 
V. 10531) found in the Jiufotang Formation near Boluochi, 
in Chaoyang County, Liaoning Province, northeastern China. 
Skull is long (3.2 cm), with a braincase shorter than the 
large rostrum; teeth recurved, found only in the tip of 
the jaws, with 6 on each side of upper jaws; vertebrae 
amphicoelous with high spinal crest; sternum has long 
lateral process, expanded distally; furcula short and 
robust; coracoid long, arc-shaped articulation to sternum; 
humerus S-shaped, 3.1 cm long, with a capital groove; ulna 
3.15 cm long; carpometacarpus mostly fused; claws on 
manual digits; fused sacrum; femur 2.85 cm long; 
tibiotarsus 3.3 cm long; tarsometatarsus 1.9 cm long; 
pygostyle present.
Type Species: Largirostrornis sexdentoris "six-toothed" 
Hou 1997: for the 6 teeth in each side of the upper jaw.
Enantiornithes Cathayornithiformes Cuspirostrisornithidae 
Early Cretaceous (?Barremian) China
(NOTE: The drawing of the skeleton of Largirostrornis in 
Hou 1997 (pg. 163) has the scale indicated incorrectly--1 
cm bar should be read as
approximately 1.7 cm.)


Longchengornis Hou, 1997 "Longcheng bird"
loong-chuhng-OR-nis (Chin. Longcheng "Dragon Town" + Gr. 
ornis "bird") (m) for Longcheng "Dragon Town," an ancient 
name for the modern city of Chaoyang (founded in 341 AD by 
Murong Kuang, a leader of the Xianbi (a group of Mongol 
people), as capital of the one-time Kingdom of Yan in 
modern Liaoning Province). Known from an incomplete 
skeleton with fragments of the skull (Holotype: IVPP V. 
10530), from the Jiufotang Formation at Boluochi, Chaoyang 
County, Liaoning Province, northeastern China. A 
enantiornithine toothed bird about the size of a sparrow 
with a ventral crest on cervical vertebrae; humerus 3.25 
cm long, with round depression on proximal end; radius 2.9 
cm long; coracoid small, narrow and straight at distal 
end; furcula thin; vertebrae amphiplatyan; 8 sacrals; 15 
caudal vertebrae, long, unfused; femur 2.15 cm long; 
tibiotarsus slender, 3.4 cm long; tarsometatarsus 2.15 cm 
long; pedal claws large, curved.   
Type Species: Longchengornis sanyanensis [sahn-ye-NEN-sis] 
Hou 1997: "from Three Yan (states)" referring to three 
feudal states of Yan (Qin Yan, Hou Yan and Northern He 
Yan) that existed in the Chaoyang region during the 
Sixteen Kingdoms Period (316-452 AD) in northern China. 
Enantiornithes Cathayornithiformes Cathayornithidae Early 
Cretaceous (?Barremian) China

Songlingornis Hou, 1997 "Songling (Mountains) bird"
soong-ling-OR-nis (Chin. Songling + Gr. ornis "bird") (m) 
named for the Songling Mountains northeast of the Chaoyang 
region of Liaoning Province; an ornithuran toothed bird 
about the size of a sparrow, known from an incomplete 
skeleton and parts of a skull (Holotype: IVPP V. 10913) 
from the Jiufotang Formation at Boluochi, Chaoyang County, 
Liaoning Province, northeastern China. Dense arrangement 
of teeth along the length of the upper and lower jaws; 
coracoid well developed; furcula process narrow as in 
modern waterbirds; sternum large, with carina, fenestrae 
and lateral processes; ulna 2.8 cm long, radius 2.1 cm 
long. 
Type Species: Songlingornis linghensis [ling-HEN-sis] Hou 
1997, referring to the Ling River (consisting of the 
Daling He "Big Ling River" and the Xiaoling He "Little 
Ling River"), running in a southwest to northeast 
direction near the region of Liaoxi (western Liaoning 
Province) in which the fossil was found in northern China. 
Ornithurae Chaoyangiformes Songlingornithidae Early 
Cretaceous (?Barremian) China


Additional Comments:

A. Longchengornis
Throughout the book the typesetter and proofreader 
evidently had problems with Latin letters--a and o are 
confused, as are r and v. Although Longchengornis is 
spelled with an 'o' for most of the book in accordance 
with the Chinese etymology, the formal statement of the 
genus name spells it "Langchengornis." Hoowever, the type 
species is given as "Longchenornis sanyanensis" just a few 
lines below. Anyone acting as first reviser should be 
careful to establish the correct spelling as 
Longchengornis.

C. Songlingornis
Songlingornis is misspelled "Sonlingornis" in various 
parts of the book--Songlingornis is the correct spelling.

2. Errors in Scale and Measurement
The scale given for at least two of the line drawings of 
specimens of new taxa is in error based on the text 
description, table of measurements, and the 3-centimeter 
scale bar on the photographs of the specimens:
Cuspirostrisornis: the 1 centimeter scale bar should be 
labeled a 2 centimeter bar.
Largirostrornis: the 1 centimeter scale bar should be read 
as approximately 1.7 cm instead.

The table giving measurements for the bones of 
Longchengornis (pg. 144) also contains as error. The ulna 
is said to be only 0.45 cm long while the radius is given 
as 2.9 cm (a size which matches the photos and 
illustration). The ulna measurement is clearly wrong since 
the bone is larger than the radius in the illustration and 
is probably closer to 3.1 (only a guess).