Authors correct 3D brain model data for Cretaceous Brazilian bird

In the initial publication, the three-dimensional model of Navaornis hestiae’s brain contained nine semilandmarks that were inadvertently projected onto an adjacent surface because of a sharp model corner. The research team corrected these coordinates with the software Stratovan Checkpoint and uploaded the revised dataset to the link cited in the original article. Updated principal component plots retain the bird’s intermediate shape along the primary axis, while now positioning it inside the crown-bird cluster on the secondary axis.

Although the variance explained by each component shifts slightly, the authors’ conclusions about avian brain evolution remain unchanged. Additional Procrustes distance analysis identifies six taxa—ranging from Archaeopteryx to modern pigeons and tinamous—as the closest morphological matches. The correction was prompted by queries from Jesús Marugán-Lobón and Jingmai O’Connor, with further input from Patrick O’Connor and peer reviewers.