Macranhinga fossil map
Where fossils of Macranhinga have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 5 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 5 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Prehistoric birds |
|---|---|
| Lived | 23.04–5 million years ago (Aquitanian to Zanclean) |
| Periods | Neogene |
| Family | Anhingidae |
| Named by | Noriega 1992 |
| Fossil records | 7 occurrences at 6 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | Argentina, Brazil |
| Rock formations | Solimoes, Ituzaingo, Santa Cruz, Ituzaingó, Solimões |
About Macranhinga
Macranhinga is a genus of extinct darters belonging to the Anhingidae. The type species is M. paranensis, which was described on the basis of complete tarsometatarsi and several dissociated skeletal elements. All the specimens come from the Ituzaingó Formation that crops out discontinuously along the eastern cliffs of the Paraná River in northeastern Argentina, the river from which the specific epithet is derived. The most striking feature of this bird is its large size, much greater than in all other known fossil or extant anhingas.
A second species, M. ranzii was described from the Solimões Formation in Acre, Amazonian Brazil, and this species was later found in the Ituzaingó Formation.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Macranhinga (revision 1293422733), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q24056586.
