Prehistoric Evolution of Birds

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/25/health/the-link-between-dinosaurs-and-birds.html

http://www.nhm.org/site/research-collections/dinosaur-institute/dinosaurs/birds-late-evolution-dinosaurs

Archaeopteryx; a very early prehistoric bird, dating back 150 million years ago during the Jurassic period, it is one of the oldest-known birds. Based on bone structure it looked to be part bird and part dinosaur. Unlike modern-day birds, it had teeth, three claws on each wing, a flat sternum, belly ribs, and a long, bony tail. However, like modern-day birds, it had feathers, a lightly-built body with hollow bones, a wishbone and reduced fingers. This animal may have been able to fly but if so not very far and not very well. Scientists took a look at dinosaur brains to trace this hyperinflation and they found that Archaeopteryx’s brain fell in between that of distantly related theropods, such as Tyrannosaurus rex, and living birds. 

I find this extremely interesting because birds may not be the smartest of all creatures but there are a variety of species of birds, each with it's own story. No matter where you go in the world you will always come across some type of bird, they fill the Earth and are able to live in any environment.  

Sloth Toothed Venomous Mammal

 

 Biologists have now completely sequenced the mitochondrial genome for the Hispaniolan solenodon, filling in the last major branch of placental mammals on the tree of life. The study conducted confirmed that the venomous mammal diverged from all other living mammals 78 million years ago, long before an asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs. ZooDom veterinarian Adrell Nunez (center) draws blood from a solenodon for DNA samples. Researchers caught the venomous mammal by allowing it to walk across their bodies at night in the forests of the Dominican Republic. Pictured from left to right: Nicolas De J. Corona, Adrell Nunez, Taras K. Oleksyk, and Yimell Corona.

The scientists in this article must be extremely dedicated to allow a venomous mammal to walk across their bodies at night! The information extracted from this mammal has allowed us to complete the mitochondrial genome sequence which can now be used to compare to other prehistoric animals. Also, if this mammal was around before the asteroid, how has its genome survived to repopulate? This study will help to answer a lot of questions that has previously formed holes in our prehistoric knowledge.