First-Ever Fossilized Lungs Of Dinosaur-Era Bird Found Hint At The Origin Of Flight
By Tom Hale
23 Oct 2018, 16:04
For the very first time, researchers have come across the fossilized remains of an ancient set of proto-bird lungs. Not only is this unbelievably rare 120 million-year-old artifact a gorgeous sight to behold, it’s now also helping palaeontologists piece together how modern birds evolved the gift of flight.
A new study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, has detailed the discovery of the first known fossilized lungs belonging to an early bird ancestor, Archaeorhynchus spathula, a pigeon-sized beast from the early Cretaceous period. Much to their surprise, the lungs share many of the key features of the hyper-efficient respiratory system found in modern birds, something that’s never been found before in early bird and dinosaur lineages.
Fossilized organs are a gold mine for palaeontologists, however, as you can imagine, they are also incredibly rare. This beautifully preserved individual met its fate some 120 million years ago, alongside dinosaurs during the Early Cretaceous period, after an unfortunate run-in with a volcano in what is now modern-day China.
Fortunately for us, a freak set of circumstances allowed some of its lung tissue to become fossilized. No one can be certain how, but University of South Florida palaeontologist Ryan Carney, a feathered dinosaur expert, told National Geographic it could have been caused by the poor proto-bird inhaling a gust of volcanic ash.
Researchers were originally attracted to the fossil by its carbonized feathers. However, the use of scanning electron microscopy picked up on a strange speckly white material in the chest not previously seen in any other fossil. A deeper analysis suggested that this was perhaps lung tissue – and very interesting lung tissue indeed.
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more: https://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/firstever-fossilized-lungs-of-dinosaurera-bird-found-hint-at-the-origin-of-flight/
Note that the reference to Archaeopteryx in the last para was no doubt intended to be Archaeorhynchus.
