The discovery of 70-million-year-old fossils from Antarctica could shed new light on the sounds of prehistoric birds and the evolution of dinosaurs, according to experts in Argentina.
A 1992 expedition to Antarctica’s Vega Island unearthed fossils belonging to the prehistoric Vegavis Iaai bird. But it wasn’t until 2013 that investigators in Buenos Aires found that it revealed the prehistoric bird’s vocal organs.
Argentine palaeontologist Fernando Novas told media that this new evidence provides new insights into how dinosaurs, including birds, evolved in their methods of communication.
“It (fossils) of great importance, a fossil from a 70-million-year-old ancient bird which has preserved something unusual and which reveals something from the Mesozoic Era for the first time, and that is the windpipe of this bird and how it emitted sounds towards the end of the dinosaurs era. The important of this discovery is that it gives us insights into the dinosaurs, including birds, how they transformed to communicate amongst themselves and how this organ (windpipe) emitted sounds, allowing for brain development. All of this gives very interesting insights of the history of evolution from over millions of years,” he said.
The avian fossil is reportedly the most complete structure to be recovered from prehistoric birds. Investigations into likely sound structures from the ancient windpipe reveal that this bird from the Mesozoic Era probably sounded like a modern-day duck.
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016
