Yutyrannus huali , a relative ofT. male monarch , had proto - feathers . paradigm credit rating : © AMNH / R. Mickens
Though we often imagine dinosaurs as being reptilian monster , late research indicates they were in reality the feathered ancestor of advanced hiss — and a fresh exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History details just how closely linked the animal are . There ’s an “ intimate connection ” between the avian species we see around the world today and out dinosaurs , as AMNH ’s provost of skill , Michael Novacek , put it in a panel discussion at a insistency prevue for the exhibit .
It ’s an idea that was first put forward in the 1860s , but is just beginning to benefit widespread acceptance . Only in the last 25 to 35 years have researchers sincerely begun to turn over into the topic , but now , it ’s almost undisputable : razz are dinosaur , in the same way that humans are mammals .
“ You could argue that we still live in the eld of dinosaur , ” AMNH ’s palaeontology curator , Mark Norell , argues , considering there are about 18,000 mintage of razzing in the world , and only about4500 speciesof mammal .
Here are nine facts about the many bird - corresponding characteristics of dinosaurs from the exhibit , " Dinosaurs Among Us , " that will have you rethinkingJurassic Park .
1. THEY WERE FEATHERED.
Some scientists suggest that all dinosaurs had some degree of plumage , though the physical evidence may not be apparent in all fossil . “ There ’s as much evidence thatTyrannosaurus rexhad feather as that anAustralopithecuslikeLucyhad fuzz , " according to Norell , who moderate the museum ’s paleontology class . Like elephants are covered in very low-cal hair , some dinosaurs may have had special plume , while others were amply covered . Even for non - flying dinosaurs , feathers would have been useful for sensing the environs and for keep ardent .
Though you would n’t know it from dinosaur motion-picture show , T. rexand theVelociraptorwere most likely covered in feathers .
2. THEIR JOINTS WERE SIMILAR.
Velociraptor mongoliensishad a distinctly bird - comparable physiology , include hinged articulatio talocruralis and swivel - articulate wrists . Image mention : © AMNH / R. Mickens
Velociraptor mongoliensis
had hinge ankle and swivel - joint articulatio radiocarpea , with three toes — just like a razz .
3. THEY HAD HOLLOW BONES.
shuttle ’ vacuous bone are light but stalwart — perfect for flight . But there ’s evidence that vacuous os evolve long before brute took to the sky . Allosaurus , alarge theropod(bird - ancestordinosaurs ) from the Late Jurassic period that grew up to 35 feet prospicient , also had empty bone .
4. THEY SLEPT IN SIMILAR POSITIONS.
Some fossil from as other as 128 million years ago have shown dinosaurs slumber in a distinctly bird - similar position , with folded limb and their head tuck under one arm . This loop position is a way for birds , as well as other warm - full-blooded animals , to continue heat while they slumber , and could indicate that dinos were warm - full-blood , too .
5. THEY HAD WISHBONES.
The large , non-white bone in the middle is a cast of aT. rexwishbone fossil . figure of speech Credit : © AMNH / R. Mickens
A Cretaceous Thanksgiving could have involved the ceremonial cracking of a wishing bone , too . The furcula was primitively thought to be a distinctly avian characteristic related to flight . However , the ivory ( two clavicles fuse together ) can also be seen in dinosaurs , including theT. rex .
6. THEY WERE BROODY.
A fossil ofCitipati osmolskaefrom the Gobi Desert show a dinosaur protect its eggs with its forearm , alike to the brooding position mod snort utilise . prototype Credit : © AMNH / D. Finnin
Birds sit on their egg to keep them tender before they hatch , a behavior call brooding . A fogy discovered in the Gobi Desert in 2012 show that dinosaur were also grizzle animals . The fossil captures the dinosaurCitipati osmolskaeover the midpoint of its nest , protect its ballock with its forearms just like a advanced bird would .
7. THEY HAD EXTREMELY EFFICIENT LUNGS.
Aki Watanabe , a PhD student at the museum ’s graduate school , point to the tell - tale hole in a dinosaur back bone that point fowl - like lung sacks . Image Credit : Shaunacy Ferro
shuttle ’ lungs are about twice as efficient as mammals ’ , according to Norell , and it seems that dinosaurs shared the same type of respiratory system . The avian respiratory scheme ’s secret lies in a serial publication of airwave sac that funnel aviation into and out of the lungs . Unlike humans , who breathe in and out using the exact same airway , the aviation birds breathe moves in just one way . It enters into one of these Sac , and is exhaled from another , confine the amount of mix that goes on between unused , oxygen - rich air and stale air . These melody sacs leave imprint that can be visualize in vertebrae , helping scientists confirm that dinosaurs had a similar respiratory system . Aki Watanabe , a Ph.D. educatee at the museum ’s alumna school who studies ventilation in dinosaurs , depict fossilize bones looking like Swiss high mallow — full of cakehole .
8. THEY HAD SIMILAR CLAWS.
The South Americanhoatzinis one of the old bird coinage still with us , originate about 64 million geezerhood ago , and they have a distinctly dino - same trait : chela . Young hoatzin have claws on their flank bones to climb back into the nest if they strike or leave to obliterate from a predatory animal . However , by the time the doll hit adulthood , these clawsfall off .
9. THEY LOOKED SO MUCH ALIKE, THEY RECEIVED BIRD NAMES.
Psittacosaurusmeans “ parrot lizard . ” The dinosaur was named for its skirt - similar schnozzle . icon Credit : © AMNH / C. Chesek
The nameStruthiomimus altusmeans “ ostrich mimic . ” The dinosaur had long back leg like an ostrich , and a beak . Psittacosaurus , a relative ofTriceratops , translate to “ parrot lizard . ” The dinosaur was key after its parrot - similar beak , and it also sported rude feathers along its hindquarters .
Dinosaurs Among Us hunt between March 21 , 2016 and January 2 , 2017 at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City .
