Palaelodidae

Palaelodidae is a family of extinct birds in the group Phoenicopteriformes, which today is represented only by the flamingos. They were widespread during the Neogene, with fossil remains found on all continents other than Antarctica. The oldest remains referred to this group appeared in the fossil record during the Oligocene in Egypt and Belgium, before palaelodids reached their peak diversity during the Miocene. Following this the group declined in the early Pliocene before going extinct on most continents. However, remains found near Cooper Creek in the Lake Eyre Basin indicate that palaelodids managed to survive in Australia until the Pleistocene. Currently three genera are recognized by scientists: Adelalopus, Palaelodus and Megapaloelodus. Most fossil remains stem from Europe and have been assigned to the type species, Palaelodus ambiguus. Due to the fragmentary nature of most of these species, little is known about their ecology. They appear to have preferred brackish lakes and lagoons. Palaelodus has previously been thought to be a wader or diver, but recent research indicates that they were better suited for swimming and possibly fed on insect larvae and other aquatic invertebrates. At least Megapaloelodus appears to have adaptations for "locking" their legs in a standing position.

==History of discovery== The first palaelodid remains were discovered during the middle of the 19th century in the region around Saint-Gérand-le-Puy in France. These remains were described by French scientist Alphonse Milne-Edwards who recognized several, in his mind distinct, forms of birds that he included in the new genus Palaelodus, a name he derived from the Ancient Greek words "palaios" (ancient) and "elodus" (inhabitant of marshes). Milne-Edwards initially named three species; P. ambiguus, P. gracilipes and P. crassipes; before returning later and establishing two more species, P. minutus and P. goliath. However most of these species would eventually come to be recognized as likely having belonged to a single form displaying variation in size among individuals. Approximately 20 years after the first description of Palaelodus, Leonhard Stejneger established the family Palaelodontidae after having misinterpreted the original etymology. This would eventually be amended by Howard, who changed it to Paloelodidae, and even later by Brotkorb who introduced the current spelling, Palaelodidae. During the 1940s and 1950s remains similar to the ones from Europe would come to be discovered in the western United States, leading to the establishing of the genus Megapaloelodus by Alden H. Miller. Although only known from a few fragmentary bones, Miller remarked that the American material appeared significantly larger than that of the European Palaelodus goliath and subsequently chose to reflect this in the genus name (although Miller misspelled Palaelodus in the process). An additional form, Megapaloelodus opsigonus, also known from fragmentary remains was named around 20 years later by Pierce Brodkorb. The 1980s saw a major revision of the European species, with Jacques Cheneval working of older work and synonymizing much of the French material into a single species while also transferring P. goliath into Miller's Megapaloelodus. The range of this family received a significant boost when fossil material of these birds was discovered in the early Oligocene of Africa and the Oligocene to Miocene of Australia. Another significant find was the discovery of unambiguous skull remains, first described by Cheneval and Escuillié in 1992. Another potential revision was suggested in 2002 by Jiří Mlíkovský, who proposed that Palaelodus and Megapaloelodus should be lumped into a single genus. This was however met with criticism and not widely accepted. The same year as Mlíkovský's suggested revision, Mayr and Smith described Adelalopus (an anagram of Palaelodus), an entirely new genus of palaelodid from the early Oligocene. The 2000s and 2010s also saw the description of multiple new species in the established genera.