Anomalopteryx

/ˌænəməˈlɒptərɪks/ noun

Definition

A genus name for an extinct New Zealand bird with unusual or irregular wing structures or feather arrangements.

Etymology

From Greek anomalos 'uneven' plus pteryx 'wing' or pteryx from pter 'feather.' This scientific name was applied to fossil birds whose wing features didn't match any living species, indicating an extinct lineage.

Kelly Says

New Zealand had the most bizarre birds imaginable—some flightless, some with weird wings—and this genus name reminds us that the islands were like a museum of evolutionary experiments!

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