Gigantohierax itchei Suárez, 2020

Suárez, William, 2022, Catalogue of Cuban fossil and subfossil birds, Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 142 (1), pp. 247-248 : 34-35

15. † Gigantohierax itchei Suárez, 2020

Itche’s Eagle (Águila de Itche)

Gigantohierax itchei Suárez, 2020 a, Zootaxa 4780: 25.

Holotype.—Distal third of right tarsometatarsus lacking trochlea IV, MNHNCu 75.4869 (Suárez 2020a: 25, fig. 11: M [anterior], N [medial], O [posterior], P [distal]). Collected in San Felipe II, during 25–28 November 1998 by members of the Depto. de Geología y Paleontología, MNHNCu (see ‘Type locality’).

Other material.— Femur: proximal end of fragmentary right, MNHNCu 75.4725 (Suárez 2020a: 25, fig. 11: J [anterior], K [posterior], L [lateral]).

Type locality.— Las Breas de San Felipe ( MLB), c. 5.5 km west of the town of Martí , San Felipe Valley, municipality of Martí, Matanzas province, Cuba (Suárez 2020a: 25; for description of this deposit see Iturralde-Vinent et al. 2000). Fig. 5 .

Distribution.—Asphalt deposits in west Cuba (see Appendix). Matanzas. Martí: MLB (Suárez 2020a: 25).

Direct 14 C dating .—None. For dating of other bird species at the type locality, see Antigone cubensis , Gymnogyps varonai and Ornimegalonyx oteroi , and of associated extinct mammals ( Parocnus browni = 11,880 ± 420 to 4,960 ± 280 years 14 C BP), see Jull et al. (2004) and Steadman et al. (2005).

Notes.—Very rare. Unknown from other Quaternary deposits in Cuba. This taxon is c.29% smaller than Gigantohierax suarezi . The holotype, MNHNCu 75.4869, was for some time held in the same collection under the incorrect catalogue number P4569, preoccupied by material of Milvago carbo (see below).

Figures

Figure 5. Las Breas de San Felipe (MLB), Martí, western Cuba. Type locality of †Coragyps seductus Suárez, †Cathartes emsliei Suárez & Olson, †Gigantohierax itchei Suárez, †Buteogallus royi Suárez, †Buteo sanfelipensis Suárez, †Milvago carbo Suárez & Olson and †M. diazfrancoi Suárez.