| Title |
Bizarre tubercles on the vertebrae of Eocene fossil birds indicate an avian disease without modern counterpart
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
The Science of Nature, April 2007
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s00114-007-0241-3 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Gerald Mayr |
| Abstract |
Remains of fossil birds with numerous bony tubercles on the cervical vertebrae are reported from the Middle Eocene of Messel in Germany and the Late Eocene of the Quercy fissure fillings in France. These structures, which are unknown from extant birds and other vertebrates, were previously described for an avian skeleton from Messel but considered a singular feature of this specimen. The new fossils are from a different species of uncertain phylogenetic affinities and show that tuberculated vertebrae have a wider taxonomic, temporal, and geographic distribution. In contrast to previous assumptions, they are no ontogenetic feature and arise from the vertebral surface. It is concluded that they are most likely of pathologic origin and the first record of a Paleogene avian disease. Their regular and symmetrical arrangement over most of the external vertebral surface indicates a systemic disorder caused by factors that do not affect extant birds, such as especially high-dosed phytohormones or extinct pathogens. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profile of 1 X user who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 1 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 1 | 100% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 36 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Portugal | 2 | 6% |
| Chile | 2 | 6% |
| Colombia | 1 | 3% |
| New Zealand | 1 | 3% |
| Argentina | 1 | 3% |
| Romania | 1 | 3% |
| Unknown | 28 | 78% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Researcher | 7 | 19% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 7 | 19% |
| Student > Bachelor | 5 | 14% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 3 | 8% |
| Student > Master | 3 | 8% |
| Other | 6 | 17% |
| Unknown | 5 | 14% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Earth and Planetary Sciences | 17 | 47% |
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 12 | 33% |
| Environmental Science | 1 | 3% |
| Unknown | 6 | 17% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 1. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 12 October 2011.
All research outputs
#19,201,293
of 23,794,258 outputs
Outputs from The Science of Nature
#1,978
of 2,195 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#72,637
of 77,707 outputs
Outputs of similar age from The Science of Nature
#11
of 13 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 23,794,258 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 11th percentile – i.e., 11% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 2,195 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 13.5. This one is in the 5th percentile – i.e., 5% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 77,707 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one is in the 3rd percentile – i.e., 3% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
We're also able to compare this research output to 13 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 7th percentile – i.e., 7% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.