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Brief Communications
Nature 443, 929 (26 October 2006) | doi:10.1038/443929a; Received 12 August 2006; Accepted 28 September 2006; Published online 25 October 2006
Palaeontology: Skull morphology of giant terror birds
Luis M. Chiappe1 & Sara Bertelli1
Abstract
These monstrous birds were probably more agile and less portly than previously thought.
The phorusrhacids ('terror birds') are an extinct lineage that includes the largest birds known1, 2, 3. Reconstructions of these Cenozoic carnivores have consistently highlighted a very high beak, round orbits and vaulted braincase, although minimal information is actually available for the skull of the largest species1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
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