This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Around 121 million years ago, somewhere in modern northeastern China, an early bird took to the skies. If you drew its silhouette, you'd notice something was missing.
Unlike any bird alive today, it had no tail feathers. Longipteryx is one of the most abundant fossils from an early group of birds called enantiornithines. Yet scientists know surprisingly little about its plumage.
A new study published in the Journal of Paleontology describes the feathers of two remarkably preserved fossils. They suggest Longipteryx flew unlike any living bird today. "Even though modern birds are the closest analog we have to enantiornithines … in reality, they really are worlds apart in terms of lifestyle and potentially movement," said Alexander Clark, a paleontologist at the University of Chicago and the Field Museum and lead author of the study.
The enantiornithine group was one of the most diverse groups of birds to exist during the Mesozoic. According to the study, much of what we know about them comes from the Jehol Biota, a collection of fossils from northeastern China dating to between 121 million and 131 million years ago. These fossils are famous for their extraordinary preservation, thanks in part to the ancient volcanic lake environment where they died, which preserved traces of skin, muscles and feathers.
"It's always great to see soft tissues preserved in fossil specimens," Clark marveled. "It's just such a treat." Longipteryx is one of the few Jehol birds known from multiple specimens. It's easily recognizable by its long snout tipped with curved teeth and is similar in size to modern meadowlarks, the study authors wrote.
Despite this, earlier specimens often lacked well-preserved feathers. The two new Longipteryx specimens were collected by an amateur fossil collector in Jianchang County, who donated them to the Shandong Tianyu Museum of Nature. According to the study, almost the entire body, from head to ankle, was covered in dark traces of fluffy body feathers.
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