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After years spent in private collections, a "ghost" fossil of one of the world's first known birds has finally emerged. Now, scientists have determined that there is a species previously unknown in the famous kind of Archeopteryx.
Archeopteryx is a transitional fossil in the evolution of a dinosaur into a bird. Nevertheless, some people might be surprised that this rare creature, the size of a crow, can fly during its lifetime, said the researchers.
Like other early risers, this Archeopteryx The species had clawed fingers and tiny pointed teeth, which "could seize and slice off prey such as lizards, insects, snails and worms," said lead researcher Martin Kundrát, a paleobiologist. at the Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in the Slovak Republic. [Avian Ancestors: Dinosaurs That Learned to Fly]
"I would describe him as a chicken with teeth and a long bony tail," Kundrát told Live Science in an email.
Scientists have named the new species Archeopteryx albersdoerferi. The name of the species pays tribute to Raimund Albersdörfer, who owns the specimen and made it available to scientists, according to the study.
The first known Archeopteryx was discovered in Bavaria, southern Germany, in 1861. Since then, scientists have studied only 12 skeletons of the creature 150 million years old, some fragmentary. (We can discuss the number of species present in Archeopteryxbut there are at least three: A. lithograph, A. siemensii and the newly appointed A. albersdoerferi.)
Some features distinguish the recently analyzed specimen from previously studied specimens. To begin, the new name Archeopteryx about 400 000 years younger than other known "first birds", making it the youngest Archeopteryx on the disc, said Kundrát. A. albersdoerferi is also the second smallest Archeopteryx recorded specimen, based on the length of the creature's ulna (a wing bone), he said.
The fossil (one of the 12 skeletons discovered to date) was discovered in 1990 in the Mörnsheim formation in Bavaria. "He changed hands several times before being sold at a low price to a private collector, believing it was a pterosaur," Kundrát said. "The scientific community was not aware of this specimen until 1996, when a cast of the specimen was briefly shown to the Naturkundemuseum. [Natural History Museum] in Bamberg, Germany. "
The original specimen became famous among scientists but was rarely seen, earning it the nickname "ghost". Finally, in 2009, Albersdörfer purchased the fossil from a private collector and offered it as a long-term loan to the Bavarian National Collection of Paleontology and Geology in Munich. Albersdörfer also signed a contract stating that he would not sell the specimen to a non-public entity, thus guaranteeing that the fossil would be available for science, Kundrát said.
Fantastic flyer
To study the specimen, scientists used synchrotron microtomography, a state-of-the-art 3D X-ray imaging technique. This allowed them to virtually reconstruct and dissect the A. albersdoerferi fossil, as well as identify skeletal adaptations in the animal that would have helped him to fly.
It seems that A. albersdoerferi was, in fact, a better flyer than the other Archeopteryx specimens, the researchers said. For example, the newly named creature had thin bones filled with air; a larger zone of fixation of the flying muscles on his triangle; and a reinforced bone configuration in his wrist and his hand. He also had fused bones in the skull and fewer teeth than older specimens, Kundrát said.
The virtual exam also revealed that A. albersdoerferi Kundrát stated that flight-related features had probably been developed as a juvenile, but additional tests are needed.
An analysis of the family trees also "convincingly demonstrated the traditional placement of Archeopteryx at the beginning of the evolutionary tree of birds, "said Kundrát. [Photos: This Dinosaur’s Feathers Shimmered with Iridescence]
Research is a good step forward in the study of Archeopteryxsaid Steve Brusatte, a paleontologist from the University of Edinburgh in the UK, who did not participate in the research.
"What is so important about this new fossil, is that it has been studied in detail with the help of synchrotron tomography, which provides unprecedented details on small features of anatomy that are too difficult to see with the naked eye, "Brusatte told Live Science. "It is clear that this new specimen has many anatomical features that evoke a flying animal, such as highly vascularized shoulder and wing and strongly welded and reinforced hand."
Although scientists have debated Archeopteryx Flight capabilities for years, "When I look at this new fossil, I see the features of an animal that could flap its wings and stay in the air," Brusatte said.
The study was published online today (October 25) in the journal Historical Biology. The research is dedicated to the study of co-investigator Junchang Lü, a professor at the Institute of Geology of the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, who died suddenly on October 8 at the age of 53.
Originally posted on Live Science.
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