Archaeopteryx restored in fossil reshuffle



Features seen in the bones of Aurornis tell scientists they are looking at the beginning of the bird line


What may be the earliest creature yet discovered on the evolutionary line to birds has been unearthed in China.

The fossil animal, which retains impressions of feathers, is dated to be about 160 million years old.

Scientists have given it the name Aurornis, which means "dawn bird".

The significance of the find, they tell Nature magazine, is that it helps simplify not only our understanding for how birds emerged from dinosaurs but also for how powered flight originated.

BBC News - Archaeopteryx restored in fossil reshuffle