Archaeopteryx
Archaeopteryx lithographica
Pronounced:
ark-ee-OP-ter-iks
Diet:
Carnivore - Insects,
small vertebrates
Name
Means:
Length:
2 feet (.65 meters)
Height:
Weight:
Time:
Fossil
remains for this
Dinosaur have
been found in
Bavaria, Germany
The Archaeopteryx fossil
is considered to be one
of the most important
ever discovered.
Archaeopteryx is
considered by many to be
the link between
dinosaurs and birds. It
had teeth and claws, but
it also had feathers and
wings. There are many
questions about this
animal that still have
not been answered. Did
it fly or could it only
glide? Some think it
used its wings to help
it jump higher rather
than actually fly.
Archaeopteryx was first
discovered in 1860 in
Bavarian lithographic
limestone quarries.
Since that time, only
five other specimens
have been uncovered,
with the best specimens
being at the Humboldt
Museum in Berlin and the
British Museum.
Archaeopteryx is widely
thought of as the first
bird. It looked very
similar to some modern
birds, and several of
the specimens clearly
show what appear to be
true feathers.
Upon closer examination,
however, scientists have
found some striking
differences between
Archeopteryx and modern
birds. Archaeopteryx had
a long, stiff, bony
tail, unlike modern
birds. Each wing had two
separate fingers on the
leading wing edges that
were equipped with
sharp, curved claws. The
biggest differences,
however, are in the
skull. It didn't have a
beak, but rather a true
set of jaws that were
equipped with many
small, sharp teeth.
Internally, there were
also many differences in
the structure of the
hipbones, and
Archaeopteryx didn't
have a breastbone.
Overall, scientists
believe that
Archaeopteryx was
probably a weak flier.
Its skeleton is also
uncannily similar to
Compsognathus
a small dinosaur that
was the size of a pigeon
that has been found in
the same quarries.
Paleontologists have
long argued over exactly
what Archaeopteryx was -
a primitive
dinosaur-like bird or a
small feathered
dinosaur. In the past 10
years an astonishing
number of specimens of
less primitive birds and
small feathered
dinosaurs have been
found.
The exact taxonomic
classification of
Archaeopteryx is still
hotly debated. That
which is shown is one of
several used. Another
would be:
Archaeopteryx giformes,
Theropoda,
Archaeopterygidae. |
