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Archaeopteryx
Click here for more Archaeopteryx Pictures
| Scientific Classification |
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Order |
Archaeopterygiformes |
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Archaeopteryx is the earliest and most primitive bird currently definitely known
(Protoavis
has been claimed as an earlier bird, however many scientists dispute
this).
The name "Archaeopteryx"
(which, as is often the case, is derived from Ancient Greek)
means "ancient wing", although it is sometimes also known
by the German
name of "Urvogel" which means "first bird".
Archaeopteryx lived in the
Jurassic period between
approximately 150 million and 145 million years ago.
fossils of the animal have been found in
what is today southern
Germany, but was
at the time an archipelago of islands in a warm tropical sea.
Many scientists believe that
Archaeopteryx is a transitional
fossil between birds
and dinosaurs, and its discovery has contributed greatly to the
debate about evolution. The first complete specimen of
Archaeopteryx was discovered in 1861, just two years after
Charles Darwin
published
On the Origin of Species by Natural Selection † ,
and seemed to be a spectacular confirmation of his ideas.
In particular, the idea that birds were descended
from
Theropod dinosaurs, was proposed by T. H. Huxley in 1868.
Archaeopteryx seems to have grown to a maximum of about 1 foot 8 inches (50 centimeters)
in length, about the size of a medium-sized modern bird. It seems to have
definitely had feathers (see below) as well as some other avian features
(including a wishbone and a partially reversed first toe),
a larger brain than most dinosaurs (again more like birds), but
Archaeopteryx
also retained several features similar to
Theropod dinosaurs.
Dinosaur-like features included its
small teeth and a long bony tail.
To date, less than a dozen specimens of Archaeopteryx have been found, and many of these
fossils appear to include evidence
of feathers. Noteably, Archaeopteryx has flight feathers, so it is thought likely that these
may have evolved from simpler feathers in its
as yet undiscovered ancestors. Over the years, there have been a number of controversies
and debates relating to Archaeopteryx, including whether it should be classified as a bird
at all, and how it relates to modern birds (currently, many scientists believe that
Archaeopteryx is a close relative of the ancestor of modern birds, rather than the direct
ancestor).
One of the key points of scientific interest in Archaeopteryx is
what it can teach us about the evolution of flying in birds. One theory is
that flight evolved from fast-running after insects and other small
prey such as small lizards (an idea first proposed by
Samuel Wendell Williston). The main alternative theory is that flight began
by jumping or gliding down from trees (this theory was first proposed by
Othniel C. Marsh).
Although it seems pretty clear that Archaeopteryx could fly, it is not
entirely clear which of these two theories it provides evidence for -
Archaeopteryx does not seem particularly well-suited for either running
or for perching in trees. We do know however that there were few
in the local environment
at the Archaeopteryx was alive, although it is of course possible that
Archaeopteryx simply used shrubs, cliffs, and whatever trees were available.
Archaeopteryx was an early bird with many dinosaur-like features that lived between 150 and 145 million years ago
Related Information & Resources
See Also
Archaeopteryx Pictures and Posters
by AllPosters
Here are some Archaeopteryx pictures and posters:
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Archaeopteryx Books
Here are some books from Amazon.com:
Disclosure: Products details and descriptions provided by Amazon.com. Our company may receive a payment if you purchase products from them after following a link from this website.
By Pat Shipman
Simon & Schuster
Released: 1999-01-15
Paperback (336 pages)
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Click Here | Product Description:
In 1861, just a few years after the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, a scientist named Hermann von Meyer made an amazing discovery. Hidden in the Bavarian region of Germany was a fossil skeleton so exquisitely preserved that its wings and feathers were as obvious as its reptilian jaws and tail. This transitional creature offered tangible proof of Darwin's theory of evolution. Hailed as the First Bird, Archaeopteryx has remained the subject of heated debates for the last 140 years. Are birds actually living dinosaurs? Where does the fossil record really lead? Did flight originate from the "ground up" or "trees down"? Pat Shipman traces the age-old human desire to soar above the earth and to understand what has come before us. Taking Wing is science as adventure story, told with all the drama by which scientific understanding unfolds. |
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Powerkids Pr
Paperback (32 pages)
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By Peter Wellnhofer
Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil
Hardcover (208 pages)
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Abbeville Kids
Hardcover (61 pages)
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In Abbeville's new "Dinosaurs" series, a talented artist and a noted paleontologist have teamed up to re-create the vanished world of the dinosaurs, for young readers of age nine and up. Each volume in the series tells the story, in comic-book form, of a different dinosaur living in its particular geological time and place. The narrative is entertaining, while all the details of the dinosaurs behavior and its encounters with other species are rendered with as much scientific accuracy as possible. At the back of each volume, meanwhile, are several short essays, abundantly illustrated with original drawings and photographs of fossils, that explain more about the creatures and geographical settings encountered in the comic.These essays, written in terms that kids will understand, reveal not only what paleontologists have learned about the age of the dinosaurs, but also how they have learned it, by examining fossils and other types of evidence. "The Journey", the first title in the series, takes place in the late Triassic period, 210 million years ago, in the northern part of the supercontinent Pangaea. It follows the dangerous trek of a plateosaurus, a large herbivore and her hatchlings in search of food.The essays following the comic chart the evolution of life on earth and in particular the emergence of dinosaurs in the Triassic, and give an overview of Triassic geography. "A Jurassic Mystery", the second title, is a paleontological whodunit set in the late Jurassic period, 150 million years ago, at a place that now lies in Germany. It investigates the suspicious death of an archaeopteryx, an early species of bird descended from the dinosaurs. The essays concern the process of fossilization, the geography of the Jurassic, and the development of flight in vertebrates. |
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By Susan Heinrichs Gray
Childs World
Library Binding (32 pages)
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By Bryan Spykerman
lulu.com
Paperback (236 pages)
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Whether the Archaeopteryx was the first bird or a somewhat clumsy airborne dinosaur is still uncertain. But Rachel's Archaeopteryx--the name given her airplane by twelve-year-old daughter, Cathy--may face extinction as she flies to remote airports making pickups for Utah's largest bank. Ever trusting and optimistic, Rachel overlooks the obvious: she is being stalked. So why would she think the disappearance of an acquaintance has anything to do with her? The bullet hole in the wing of her airplane catches her attention. But wasn't that just a potshot from a drunken hunter? Rachel wants to put these distractions behind her. She has more important things on her mind, like keeping pace with her increasingly independent daughter and her growing "friendship" with the beautiful and athletic, Sherry Sanchez. No time for unpleasant thoughts until her lofty view of the world snares her in a complex-and dangerous-web. |
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By Peter Wellnhofer
Friedrich Pfeil
Hardcover (256 pages)
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By Richard M. Gaines
Buddy Books
Library Binding (32 pages)
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By Rupert Oliver
Rourke Pub Group
Hardcover
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Freunde des Jura-Museums Eichstatt
Hardcover (382 pages)
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