/kloc-what did ancient birds look like 0/100 million years ago? Analysis of amber specimens of fierce ancient birds!

What were ancient birds like hundreds of millions of years ago? Analysis of amber specimens of ancient raptors! Interested readers can pay attention to school easy search.

We know that the formation of amber is very rare, and the small animals contained in amber may be of great research value to human beings, because the formation of amber takes a long time, during which the species may change greatly. Recently, a fierce ancient bird wrapped in amber hundreds of millions of years ago was found. What bird is it, what bird does it belong to and what does it look like?

Amber specimen

On October 30th, 65438/kloc-0, Chinese and foreign scientists found a very special bird fossil in amber in Myanmar today, and the details of it are of great significance for us to understand the diversity of ancient birds and the evolution of feathers. The research was led by Xing Lida, an associate professor at China Geo University, Niu Kecheng, executive director of the World Museum of Natural History in Liang Ying, RyanMackler, a professor at the Royal Museum of Saskatchewan, and JingMaiK, an American researcher at the Institute of vertebrate paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. O 'Connor) studied with other scholars. These research papers were published in Science Report, an internationally renowned academic journal under the Nature Group.

In 20 16, team Xing Lida discovered the earliest ancient bird wings and dinosaurs in the world in amber, and then found chickens, intact ancient birds, frogs and snakes in amber. "In the three years about 65438+ billion years ago, Burmese amber produced a series of immature anti-bird bones with different development stages and integrity. As more and more fossils are discovered, the ancient bird fauna in Huguang has gradually formed, which has greatly deepened our understanding of ancient birds, especially anti-birds. " Xing Lida introduced.

Tail feather close-up

The scholar's research specimen comes from Kukang Valley in Kachin State in northern Myanmar, which is a famous amber producing area. Kang Hu Valley is located in the northernmost part of Myanmar, upstream of Chindun River. Including the Luoda Basin and the New Pingyang Basin, with high mountains and dense forests, vertical and horizontal rivers and flooding in rainy season. Myanmar is a "place where the devil lives". It is said that savages once appeared, so the locals call Fiona Fang, which is uninhabited hundreds of miles away, "savage mountain". Amber has a history of about 1 100 million years here, which provides a unique record of forest ecosystem.

The newly discovered ancient amber bird was collected by Liang Ying World Natural History Museum in Quanzhou, Fujian. Liang Ying's specimens didn't preserve many foot bones, but the contours of bird feet were recorded through careful skin, and there were still a lot of hairs on the skin surface of these preserved ancient bird feet. In addition, the specimen also preserved a very rare dominant feather.

Liang Ying's feet are about 7 mm long. The microscope provides a detailed three-dimensional anatomical structure for this small sample. We classify this specimen as anti-bird according to the proportion of feet and feathers. The overall shape of its feet and the curvature of its well-preserved horny sheath strongly indicate that it is an arboreal bird. "Specifically, Liang Ying specimens have large, curved claws and flat claws. Its cross-sectional shape is similar to that of existing arboreal birds, but different from that of terrestrial birds. Secondly, the distal phalanx of the specimen is longer, which is the characteristic of arboreal birds, while the proximal phalanx of terrestrial birds is longer, "Xing Lida explained.

3 scanning foot image

The most interesting thing about the new specimen is that its toes are very thick, which is different from all the bird fossils found in this area before. The outer toe, the fourth toe, has a laterally elongated toe pad, which is very thick relative to the two inner toes. In short, the fourth toe is wider than the second or third toe, and its protruding foot pad and protruding plantar surface may be related to predation. Strong toes with claws are similar to existing raptors, which may indicate that Liang Ying is a small, hollow insect-eating bird.

In addition, Professor RyanMcGuire told the reporter: "In the specimen we described this time, each toe has horny scales and filamentous feathers, which are the densest and longest at the base of the second toe. Scaly silky feathers are rare in modern birds, but they don't seem to exist in adult birds. The horny scales and filamentous feathers of this specimen may play a tactile role and help it catch small prey such as insects. " So far, horny scales and filamentary feathers have been found on the feet of all anti-bird species found in lakes and harbors. They seem to be more obvious in elderly individuals or more developed in some species.

4 Pocket Raptor Restoration Map Drawing Han Zhixin

The dominant feather in amber is a new discovery made by Xing Lida's team at the end of 20 18. Its biggest feature is the open feather shaft, which forms an effective light tail feather. In other words, the opening of the feather pole can be an energy-saving measure to reduce the energy consumption of growing such long feathers, or a structure specially developed for long and light tail feathers. At present, paleontologists believe that the dominant feather of feather axis is a tool for internal information exchange of ancient birds, and its main functions are courtship display, species identification and visual communication. "No bone material was found near the dominant feather of the feather shaft we found before, but so far, only anti-bird remains have been found in Burmese amber, so these strange feathers are temporarily classified as anti-birds. The specimen discovered this time is the first time to prove that the dominant feather of the feather shaft can directly correspond to the anti-bird remains. " Paleontologist Zou Jingmei told reporters.

Generally speaking, the toes of Liang Ying specimens are wider than those of any kind of anti-bird previously observed in Burmese amber. This unique foot shape reflects the different ways that birds catch prey. This type of foot has not been found in the local fossil records, which shows that the diversity of birds in the dinosaur era far exceeded our imagination. More and more evidences show that the bird fauna in Lake Harbor is unique compared with other Cretaceous fauna.

It is reported that the research of this subject has been funded by the National Natural Science Foundation, major projects of the National Natural Science Foundation, general projects of the National Natural Science Foundation and the National Geographic Society of the United States.