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A fossil feather from the age of dinosaurs may explain why only some birds survived
Confirmed
In Short: Researchers have discovered a well-preserved fossil feather in dinosaur faeces, potentially explaining why some birds survived the mass extinction 66 million years ago.
Researchers have discovered a well-preserved fossil feather in dinosaur faeces, potentially explaining why some birds survived the mass extinction 66 million years ago. The feather, found in a coprolite from the Hell Creek Formation in Montana, could provide clues about why modern birds are the only dinosaur group to have survived. Lead author Jingmai O'Connor, an associate curator of fossil reptiles at the Field Museum in Chicago, said, 'This is the first-ever feather in a coprolite … and it probably would not have been found if it wasn't for a lucky break.
The fossil was discovered by David DeMar, a vertebrate palaeontologist at the University of Queensland, who found the dark, reddish-brown nodule while collecting fish fossils. Micro-CT scanning revealed the coprolite contained multiple feathers, tiny fish scales, and leg bones from a small bird. O'Connor said, 'Plumage might have been the difference between life and death during the extinction event.
According to reports, the discovery, published in Current Biology, might provide clues about why today's birds are the only dinosaur group that survived the mass extinction. Steven Salisbury, a vertebrate palaeontologist at the University of Queensland, said, 'There are quite a few fossils that show feathers, but most of the time you're just looking at impressions of feathers … the actual feather is not there.
O'Connor and her team CT-scanned the small coprolite and found it contained still other feathers, a couple of bone fragments, and two tiny fish scales. The plume, which they describe in the journal Current Biology, is part of a fossil assortment that may reveal part of a late Cretaceous food web from some 66 million years ago. The researchers speculate it could help explain why, around that time, many types of ancient birds died out alongside the dinosaurs after a giant asteroid collided with the Earth — while others survived to give rise to the birds we know today.
What's confirmed
- Researchers have discovered a well-preserved fossil feather in dinosaur faeces, potentially explaining why some birds survived the mass extinction 66 million years ago. The feather, found in a coprolite from the Hell Creek Formation in Montana, could provide clues about why modern birds are the only dinosaur group to have survived. Lead author Jingmai O'Connor, an associate curator of fossil reptiles at the Field Museum in Chicago, said, 'This is the first-ever feather in a coprolite … and it probably would not have been found if it wasn't for a lucky break.
- The fossil was discovered by David DeMar, a vertebrate palaeontologist at the University of Queensland, who found the dark, reddish-brown nodule while collecting fish fossils. Micro-CT scanning revealed the coprolite contained multiple feathers, tiny fish scales, and leg bones from a small bird. O'Connor said, 'Plumage might have been the difference between life and death during the extinction event.
- According to reports, the discovery, published in Current Biology, might provide clues about why today's birds are the only dinosaur group that survived the mass extinction. Steven Salisbury, a vertebrate palaeontologist at the University of Queensland, said, 'There are quite a few fossils that show feathers, but most of the time you're just looking at impressions of feathers … the actual feather is not there.
- O'Connor and her team CT-scanned the small coprolite and found it contained still other feathers, a couple of bone fragments, and two tiny fish scales. The plume, which they describe in the journal Current Biology, is part of a fossil assortment that may reveal part of a late Cretaceous food web from some 66 million years ago. The researchers speculate it could help explain why, around that time, many types of ancient birds died out alongside the dinosaurs after a giant asteroid collided with the Earth — while others survived to give rise to the birds we know today.
What's still developing
- Researchers think the fossilised faeces may have come from a Tyrannosaurus rex. ( Supplied: Andrey Atuchin ) Palaeontologists have discovered an extremely well-preserved feather from an extinct bird in fossilised dinosaur faeces.
- "I was crawling up a rocky outcrop collecting fish fossils when I came across a dark, reddish-brown nodule about half the size of a golf ball," Dr DeMar said.
- When O'Connor joined the project, very little was known about the feather, except that it looked quite modern.
- "It's certainly impressive that this amazing feather morphology could be detected in dinosaur poop," says Richard Prum, an ornithologist at Yale University who didn't contribute to the research.
- As it turned out, this was the first fossilized feather from this part of the world.
- “We rarely find fossils of birds and even more rarely their feathers, giving us such important insight into the evolution of this key aspect of their biology,” said Professor Gregory Wilson Mantilla, a researcher at the University of Washington and curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture.
- While some dinosaurs are thought to have had ‘fuzzy’ or ‘downy’ feathers (shown in this illustration as the yellow spikes on a Nanotyrannus’ neck), ancient birds (such as the one in the Nanotyrannus’ mouth) were more likely to have had feathers that look similar to the birds of today.
- “On top of that, these bird feathers found within a large fossilized dinosaur dung give us an incredible window into predator-prey interactions 66 million years ago.” The specimen was from a large predatory dinosaur, possibly a Tyrannosaurus rex or a Nanotyrannus.