 These are not part of the "higher waterbirds" but of the Galloanserae, a basal lineage of neognath birds.Some features, mainly of the skull, support this hypothesis.For example, the pelagornithids lack a crest on the underside of the palatine bone, while the Neoaves – the sister clade of the Galloanserae which includes the "higher waterbirds" and the "higher landbirds" – have such a crest.