The Anchiornis huxleyi, the oldest discovered feathered species, thought to be the missing link between and proof of evolution of dinosaurs to birds.
The finds date back to between 151m and 164m years ago, which suggest they are older than archaeopteryx, previously thought to be the oldest undisputed bird.
Xu, who is based in Beijing, said: “The fossils provide confirmation that the bird-dinosaur hypothesis is correct, and supports the idea that birds descended from theropod dinosaurs (the group of predatory dinosaurs that includes allosaurus and velociraptor).”
The fossils were found in Liaoning province. Xu told the Guardian he was shocked when he first saw the best of the specimens. “This was really unexpected. One thing that would shock you is that this is covered with feathers everywhere except the beak and the claw,” he said. “It is the first feathered species known so far; the earliest known feathered species.”
How awesome is that thing? And how awesome is science? We can literally dig up dinobirds from 150 million years ago and piece together the history of the world.
I just wish we had shit like that flying around now. All we have in Brooklyn is dumbass pigeons.
(via)
