User:Zachlepage/sandbox

User:Zachlepage/sandbox

2). Titanis

After reading this page, I feel as if I may be able to add relevant information that will be useful to people reading the article.

The article is rated Start class (mid-importance) among birds, and Start class among Paleontology (low-importance).

Some revisions have been made to the article, however there is much that could be added.

There is almost nothing in the article about the habitat, dietary needs, and range that the "Terror Bird" occupied.

Much can be added to this article which a little research and examining previous articles that the page uses.

The page doesn't appear to have been updated in a little while, and although information isn't necessarily outdated, much more could be added as stated above.

Bias doesn't seem to be much of a problem for this page since there isn't a lot of information on the topic.

A few of the links require payment to read the article but that is not uncommon due to the content of this topic.

A source was found that has images of a skull being found of a similar species of this creature, however a skull of Titanis has never been found.

The skulls from previously found terror birds can be used as a reference for what is to be expected for a skull of Titanis.

27 of the 41 fossil specimen were found in the Santa Fe River in Florida.

multiple articles have cited that Titanis had weak side to side movements of the skull, however forward and backward movement was very strong and was much more lethal than side to side.

Titanis

Titanis walleri is a large extinct flightless carnivorous bird of the family Phorusrhacidae, endemic to North America from the Hemphillian to the late Blancan stage of the Pliocene living 4.9—1.8 Ma, and died out during the Gelasian Age of the earliest Pleistocene, existing approximately 3.1 million years. It was 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) tall and weighed approximately 150 kilograms (330 lb).

Taxonomy

The generic name, Titanis, refers to the titans, Ancient Greek gods that preceded the Twelve Olympians, in allusion to the bird's size. The specific name, T. walleri, honors the holotype's collector, Benjamin I. Waller.

Evolution

It lived approximately 5-2 million years ago (early Pliocene to early Pleistocene) in North America. Fossil evidence has been found in three locations in Florida and one in Texas. The Gilchrist County, Florida site dates from 3.0 to 2.9 million years ago. The Santa Fe River, where 27 of the 41 Titanis fossil specimen have been found is located in Gilchrist County, Florida. The other locations where Titanis was found include Port Charlotte and Inglis, Florida. Only one specimen has been found outside of Florida, and that was in the Nueces River in Texas.

From circumstantial evidence (i.e., bone fractures), it has been suggested that the species did not become extinct until 15,000 years ago, but more precise dating by McFadden and colleagues refutes such a late date; all known Titanis fossils appear to be at least 2 million years old. Titanis was part of the group of giant flightless birds called the Phorusrhacidae, which are nicknamed "terror birds", and has been thought to represent the youngest species of the lineage (recently, a significantly younger South American example has been reported). The Phorusrhacidae originated in South America; Titanis is the only known member of the branch of the group that migrated out of that continent during the Great American Interchange.

Studies of the closely related Andalgalornis steulleti, which is also in the family Phorusrhadiae reveals new information about the head and neck movement of Titanis Walleri and all "terror birds" of this family. In a series of tests on the skull of Anadalgalornis, it was found that these birds would have had a hard time moving their heads laterally. However, the back and forth movement of the skull was tremendous, and it is thought that Titanis most likely used it's massive skull to pummel prey to death.

A lineage of related predatory birds, the bathornithids, occurred in North America from the Paleocene to the Miocene. They were not ancestral to Titanis or any other phorusrhacid, but they occupied similar ecological niches and some like Paracrax even attained similar sizes, reaching above 2 meters in height. They became extinct more or less 15 million years before Titanis reached North America. There are no living relatives to Titanis today.

Description

Titanis was 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) tall and weighed approximately 150 kilograms (330 lb), but with large variance (perhaps indicating strong sexual dimorphism). Though its skull has not been found, it most probably would have been large, with a huge, axe-like beak, like its relatives.

It is estimated that Titanis could run at speeds of 65 km/h. I did not see this in any of my readings.

The wings were small and could not have been used for flight. The wing bones articulated in an unusual joint-like structure, suggesting the digits could flex to some degree. It also had a relatively rigid wrist, which would not have allowed the hand to fold back against the arm to the same degree as other birds. This led R. M. Chandler to suggest that the wings may have supported some type of clawed, mobile hand similar to the hands of non-avian theropod dinosaurs, such as the dromaeosaurs (also popularly known as "raptors"). However, it was later pointed out that this wing joint is not in fact unique, and is present in seriemas (extant members of the same order, Cariamae, to which Titanis and other phorusrhacids belonged), which do not have any specialized grasping hands.

Overall, Titanis was very similar to the South American Phorusrhacos and Devincenzia, its closest relatives. However, it differs from these in having a shorter, thicker neck, and an overall more heavily built bodily structure. Little is known of its body structure, but it seems to have been less wide-footed than Devincenzia, with a proportionally much stronger middle toe.

Titanis was thought to be carnivourous and most likely preyed on the many small mammals of the time period.

Pop Culture

Titanis has even shown up in Pop culture, specifically in the show "Primeval" and the movie 10,000 BC. Titanis' behavior is not well documented, however it was believed to hunt alone rather than in packs as shown in these instances.

Additions to the article!!!-These are now added in!!!

Pliocene - Hemphillian to late Blancan time period.

27 of the 41 known Titanis Walleri specimen were found in the Santa Fe River in Florida, and 40 of the 41 have been found in Florida.

Titanis has even shown up in Pop culture, specifically in the show "Primeval" and the movie 10,000 BC. Titanis' behavior is not well documented, however it was believed to hunt alone rather than in packs as shown in these instances.

Studies of the closely related Andalgalornis steulleti, which is also in the family Phorusrhadiae reveals new information about the head and neck movement of Titanis Walleri and all "terror birds" of this family. In a series of tests on the skull of Anadalgalornis, it was found that these birds would have had a hard time moving their heads laterally. However, the back and forth movement of the skull was tremendous, and it is thought that Titanis most likely used it's massive skull to pummel prey to death.

There are no living relatives to Titanis today.

Some of the knowledge above also came from sources that have previously been cited.

Terror birds are considered carnivorous creatures.

Fossil specimens have been found in the Santa Fe River, Port Charlotte, and Inglis Florida. Evidence of Titanis has also been found in the Nueces River of Texas as well.