Sphenisciformes
unranked clade · (Sharpe 1891) · accepted · extant
143 descendant taxa · 319 fossil sites · 52 formations · 8 countries
Lived when
Paleogene – Quaternary
66–0 million years ago
Found where
8 countries
52 rock formations
Fossil record
319 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 66 million years, from 66 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.
- Sphenisciformes was named in 1891 ((Sharpe 1891)) — 135 years ago.
- Fossils have been recorded in 8 countries and 52 named rock formations.
- This group contains 143 named taxa, including 89 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).