PhysOrg.com [USA], April 6, 2011
Very little was known about Mesozoic birds until nearly complete
skeletons began to be discovered in the now famous Jehol Group deposits
of northeastern China. The first few specimens to be found were partial
skeletons, most preserving only the voids of the bones. Over the past
two decades, new specimens have continued to be uncovered at an
uprecedented rate. More recent published discoveries have typically been
complete, including feathers, and benefited from recent advances in
preparational techniques, thus providing a huge wealth of data regarding
species diversity in northeastern China during the Early Cretaceous and
the greatest wealth of data on Mesozoic birds anywhere in the world.
Using this new data, a renewed look at the first few Jehol birds to be
described reveals new information.
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-04-boluochia-longipteryx.html
Did dinosaurs have lice? Researchers say it's possible
EurekAlert [USA], 5-Apr-2011
A new study louses up a popular theory of animal evolution and opens up
the possibility that dinosaurs were early – perhaps even the first –
animal hosts of lice. The study, in Biology Letters, uses fossils and
molecular data to track the evolution of lice and their hosts. It offers
strong evidence, the researchers said, that the ancestors of lice that
today feed on birds and mammals began to diversify before a mass
extinction event killed off the dinosaurs about 65 million years ago.
"This study lends support to the idea that major groups of birds and
mammals were around before the dinosaurs went extinct," said Kevin
Johnson, an ornithologist with the State Natural History Survey at the
University of Illinois and a principal investigator on the study. "If
the lice were around, we know their hosts were probably around."
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2
011-04/uoia-ddh033111.php
Largest whale skeleton in the world found at Siwa Oasis
Al-Masry Al-Youm [Egypt], 04/04/2011
The Environment Ministry announced on Monday that it had discovered the
largest whale skeleton in the world, dating back 37 million years. The
skeleton was found in the area of Siwa Oasis, which became a natural
protectorate in 2002. According to a statement from the Environment
Ministry, the Egyptian Fossil Exploration Team found the skeleton during
a collaboration with the University of Michigan that lead to the
discovery of several important fossils. The ministry also announced that
150 new palaeontological sites have recently been registered as
excavation sites. Among the specimens contained in the sites are three
different types of marine species, namely whales, dugongs, and giant sea
turtles, as well as water snakes, and shark teeth.
http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/386299
Fossil Pictures: Oldest Flying Insect Imprint Found
National Geographic News, April 6, 2011
The oldest known full-body impression of a flying insect has been
discovered, a new study says. The 300-million-year-old fossil (seen in
an undated picture), which dates to the Carboniferous period, was likely
made by an ancestor of the mayfly, scientists say.
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