Australaves[3] is a recently defined[4]clade of
birds, consisting of the
Eufalconimorphae (
passerines,
parrots and
falcons) as well as the
Cariamiformes (including
seriemas and the extinct "
terror birds").[5] They appear to be the
sister group of
Afroaves.[5] As in the case of Afroaves, the most
basal clades have predatory extant members, suggesting this was the ancestral lifestyle;[6] however, some researchers like
Darren Naish are skeptical of this assessment, since some extinct representatives such as the herbivorous Strigogyps led other lifestyles.[7] Basal parrots and falcons are at any rate vaguely
crow-like and probably omnivorous.[8]
^Kimball RT, Wang N, Heimer-McGinn V, Ferguson C, Braun EL (2013). "Identifying localized biases in large datasets: A case study using the Avian Tree of Life". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 69 (3). Mol Phylogenet Evol: 1021–1032.
doi:
10.1016/j.ympev.2013.05.029.
PMID23791948.