The evolutionary history of birds is extraordinarily long. The most primitive, the well-known Archeopteryx , lived 150 million years ago in what is now southern Germany. However, there is a controversy among scientists about whether these proto-birds were capable of flight and to what extent they could do so.
A new study carried out by an international team of Spanish paleontologists together with the director of the Dinosaur Institute of the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles, Luis M. Chiappe, published in Scientific Reports magazine, reveals the intricate arrangement of muscles and ligaments that controlled the main wing feathers of a superprimitive bird . Research has focused on the exceptionally well-preserved wing of a 125-million-year-old bird from the central region of our country. Beyond the bones preserved in the fossil, the small wing reveals in detail a complex network of muscles that helps modern birds control the fit of the main feathers, allowing them to dominate the flight.
According to Chiappe, the relationship between the muscle tissue conserved in the fossil and the wing characteristics of modern birds indicates that some of the earliest birds were capable of aerodynamic feats similar to those of many modern birds .
In any case, although we now know that ancient birds may have flown over the heads of dinosaurs, some precise aspects of their flight techniques remain unclear. Those yes, experts believe that these new fossils will allow them to dissect the most complex aspects of the early evolution of bird flight.
