Mystiornis fossil map
Where fossils of Mystiornis have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 115 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 115 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 | 121.4–113.2 million years ago (Aptian) |
| Periods | Cretaceous |
| Family | Mystiornithidae |
| Named by | Kurochkin et al. 2011 |
| Fossil records | 1 occurrences at 1 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | Russia |
| Rock formations | Ilek |
About Mystiornis
Mystiornis is an extinct genus of bird which existed in what is now western Siberia, Russia during the early Cretaceous period (Barremian/Aptian age). It is known from an isolated metatarsus found in the Shestakovo-1 locality of southern Western Siberia. It was named by Evgeny N. Kurochkin, Nikita V. Zelenkov, Alexandr O. Averianov and Sergei V. Leshchinskiy in 2011, and the type species is Mystiornis cyrili. While most recent studies place it as an enantiornithean, specifically an avisaurid, the authors note that the placement in both groups is tentative and further material will be required to make a firm decision on placement due to the unusual features of the existing material.
Based on the strongly shortened metatarsal II and orientation of throchleae, Mystiornis had diving adaptations similar to that of Gansus and Neogaeornis. It was the size of a thrush.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Mystiornis (revision 1379907110), 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: Q6949020.
