Sazavis was an enantiornithine bird from the Late Cretaceous.[1] It might have been related to Nanantius and lived in what is now the Kyzyl Kum of Uzbekistan.[2]

Sazavis
Temporal range: Turonian, 93.5–89.3 Ma
Life reconstruction of Sazavis prisca.
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Clade: Avialae
Clade: Enantiornithes
Genus: Sazavis
Nesov, 1989 vide Nesov & Jarkov, 1989
Species:
S. prisca
Binomial name
Sazavis prisca
Nesov, 1989 vide Nesov & Jarkov, 1989

There is a single species known to date, Sazavis prisca.

Etymology

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Generic name composed of the Kazakh саз (saz) ("clay") and the Latin avis ("bird"), referring to the clay depression of Uzbekistan, near which this bird was discovered. The specific name derived from the Latin priscus and means "ancient".[2]

Description

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It is only known from a single piece of tibiotarsus[1] about 4.5 mm (0.18 in) wide in a distal joint.[2]

The bone has been found in the Bissekty Formation. The bird was a size of a pigeon,[1] approximately some 18.5 cm (7.3 in) long in life.[3]

Paleoecology

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Sazavis possibly lived on nearby coasts or in the liman forests dominated by the flowering plants of the Platanaceae family.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Holtz, Thomas R. Jr. (2012). Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 October 2022. Winter 2011 Appendix
  2. ^ a b c d L. A. Nesov, A. A. Yarkov (1989). Новые птицы мел-палеогена СССР и некоторые замечания по истории возникновения и эволюции класса (New Cretaceous-Paleogene birds of USSR and some remarks about history of the origin and evolution of class) (PDF). Vol. 197. USSR Academy of scienses. pp. 81–83. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 March 2019.
  3. ^ Mickey Mortimer (26 July 2001). "Mesozoic Bird Sizes". Archived from the original on 28 February 2017.
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