Phaethontidae
family · Brandt 1831 · accepted · extant
9 descendant taxa · 88 fossil sites · 3 formations · 19 countries
Lived when
Paleogene – Quaternary
56–0 million years ago
Found where
19 countries
3 rock formations
Fossil record
88 sites
0 catalogued specimens
Inside this group
Immediate children
- Terminal taxon — no children recorded.
Did you know
Facts from the record
- Its fossils span about 56 million years, from 56 to 0 million years ago.
- The youngest known fossil is around 0 million years old — that is roughly 0 times further back than the whole of human history.
- Phaethontidae was named in 1831 (Brandt 1831) — 195 years ago.
- Fossils have been recorded in 19 countries and 3 named rock formations.
- This group contains 9 named taxa, including 6 species.
- This group is not extinct — living birds belong inside it.
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Where next
Data from the Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0).