...or you'll turn into a bird.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/evolution/11004428/Dinosaurs-shrank-into-birds.html
Quote(http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02993/Dinosaurs-160_2993165e.jpg)
Birds evolved from heropod dinosaurs, the only dinosaurs that kept getting inexorably smaller, scientists find
Massive meat-eating ground-dwelling dinosaurs shrunk over 50 million years and evolved into agile flying birds, according to new research.
Scientists from the University of Southampton have presented in the journal Science a detailed family tree of dinosaurs and their bird descendants, which maps out the evolutionary transformation.
They showed that the branch of theropod dinosaurs, which gave rise to modern birds, were the only dinosaurs that kept getting inexorably smaller.
Darren Naish, vertebrate palaeontologist, said: ''These bird ancestors also evolved new adaptations, such as feathers, wishbones and wings, four times faster than other dinosaurs.''
Associate professor Michael Lee, from the University of Adelaide, added: ''Birds evolved through a unique phase of sustained miniaturisation in dinosaurs.
''Being smaller and lighter in the land of giants, with rapidly evolving anatomical adaptations, provided these bird ancestors with new ecological opportunities, such as the ability to climb trees, glide and fly. Ultimately, this evolutionary flexibility helped birds survive the deadly meteorite impact which killed off all their dinosaurian cousins.''
Co-author Gareth Dyke, senior lecturer in vertebrate palaeontology at the University of Southampton, said: ''The dinosaurs most closely related to birds are all small, and many of them - such as the aptly named Microraptor - had some ability to climb and glide.''
The study examined more than 1,500 anatomical traits of dinosaurs to reconstruct their family tree. The researchers used sophisticated mathematical modelling to trace evolving adaptions and changing body size over time and across dinosaur branches.
The international team also included Andrea Cau, from the University of Bologna and Museo Geologico Giovanni Capellini.
The study concluded that the branch of dinosaurs leading to birds was more evolutionary innovative than other dinosaur lineages.
Associate Prof Lee added: ''Birds out-shrank and out-evolved their dinosaurian ancestors, surviving where their larger, less evolvable relatives could not.''
This was always what I somewhat concluded. I mean, I didn't think actual shrinking but, something a bit similar.
-Nam
well, the water got colder...
:whistle:
They make great kitty treadmills. (The ones with the glass doors are recommended.)
Quote from: Gawdzilla Sama on July 31, 2014, 08:39:01 PM
They make great kitty treadmills. (The ones with the glass doors are recommended.)
Had a similar effect with one that crawled up next to the fan belt of my car. I now know the meaning of the word ululation.
I always thought dinosaurs were warm blooded and evolved into birds. Solitary
Quote from: Solitary on August 04, 2014, 12:07:44 AM
I always thought dinosaurs were warm blooded and evolved into birds. Solitary
To my understanding, they were both.
-Nam
Quote from: Solitary on August 04, 2014, 12:07:44 AM
I always thought dinosaurs were warm blooded and evolved into birds. Solitary
They were lukewarm-blooded, to be more precise. Still better than a reptile, but used less energy than a mammal.
SmOff How do you know? Were you there? :razz: Solitary
Quote from: Solitary on August 04, 2014, 11:36:39 AM
SmOff How do you know? Were you there? :razz: Solitary
Fuckin paleontology, bro.
I think they were playing in the refrigerator.
I thought this was going to be a scientific evaluation of the downfalls of using a clothes dryer to play hide-and-seek.
Quote from: Hijiri Byakuren on August 04, 2014, 03:46:47 PM
Fuckin paleontology, bro.
I'm impressed, which branch or all of them? Micropaleontology: Study of generally microscopic fossils, regardless of the group to which they belong.
Paleobotany: Study of fossil plants; traditionally includes the study of fossil algae and fungi in addition to land plants.
Palynology: Study of pollen and spores, both living and fossil, produced by land plants and protists.
Invertebrate Paleontology: Study of invertebrate animal fossils, such as mollusks, echinoderms, and others.
Vertebrate Paleontology: Study of vertebrate fossils, from primitive fishes to mammals.
Human Paleontology (Paleoanthropology): The study of prehistoric human and proto-human fossils.
Taphonomy: Study of the processes of decay, preservation, and the formation of fossils in general.
Ichnology: Study of fossil tracks, trails, and footprints.
Paleoecology: Study of the ecology and climate of the past, as revealed both by fossils and by other methods. Solitary
Quote from: Solitary on September 07, 2014, 12:34:00 PM
I'm impressed, which branch or all of them? Micropaleontology: Study of generally microscopic fossils, regardless of the group to which they belong.
Paleobotany: Study of fossil plants; traditionally includes the study of fossil algae and fungi in addition to land plants.
Palynology: Study of pollen and spores, both living and fossil, produced by land plants and protists.
Invertebrate Paleontology: Study of invertebrate animal fossils, such as mollusks, echinoderms, and others.
Vertebrate Paleontology: Study of vertebrate fossils, from primitive fishes to mammals.
Human Paleontology (Paleoanthropology): The study of prehistoric human and proto-human fossils.
Taphonomy: Study of the processes of decay, preservation, and the formation of fossils in general.
Ichnology: Study of fossil tracks, trails, and footprints.
Paleoecology: Study of the ecology and climate of the past, as revealed both by fossils and by other methods. Solitary
All of them. Simultaneously.