Episode 22 is all about Changyuraptor, a giant, flying, non-avian dinosaur.
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On this episode, we focus on:
- The dinosaur of the day: Changyuraptor yangi, which implies “lengthy feathered robber”
- Changyuraptor is 125 million years previous, not a chicken, however a non-avian dinosaur that would most likely fly
- Lived within the Creteaceous interval, in China (present in northeastern China, within the Liaoning Province)
- Gang Han, a paleontologist from Bohai College, and his workforce described Changyuraptor in Nature Communications in July 2014
- Much like its shut relative Microraptor (had “hindwings” on legs, elaborate tail feathers), however was a lot greater. Microraptor was in regards to the dimension of a hawk, whereas Changyuraptor was nearer to an eagle’s dimension (4.3 toes lengthy with tail feathers that have been nearly 1 foot lengthy–the longest discovered on a non-avian dinosaur)
- Changyuraptor had a 21 foot wingspan
- Changyuraptor was NOT a chicken (first birds descended from dinosaurs 25 million years earlier; Changyuraptor, like Microraptor, was a dromaeosaurid
- Additionally NOT a pterosaur, a reptile identified for its flying capabilities
- A part of Microraptoria group, predatory dinosaurs with 4 wings (which means they’d such lengthy feathers on their legs it regarded like a second set of wings)
- Nonetheless, it’s unclear how Changyuraptor moved by the air
- Some paleontologists thought it could have flown with a spread-eagle or biplane posture, however the principle doesn’t match with Changyuraptor’s anatomy, which most likely wasn’t very versatile within the hips, like most theropods (they most likely had their legs immediately below their our bodies whereas within the air)
- Could have climbed timber
- They most likely landed on the bottom however spent loads of time in timber
- In all probability used all their limbs to fly by dense timber
- They may flip and brake quick, possibly to catch small prey
- Changyuraptor is the most important theropod with feathers on its “hindwings”, or decrease hind limbs
- Had feathers that coated its entire physique
- Tail feathers could have helped it land safely (extra management)
- The tail feathers helped decelerate its touchdown (preserve it from getting injured)
- Nevertheless it’s unclear if the four-wings was one thing solely microraptorines had, or a standard ancestor had
- Due to its giant dimension, it most likely couldn’t fly for lengthy durations of time
- Feathers on the arm weren’t effectively preserved, so scientists have no idea the way it supported its weight within the air
- Changyuraptor’s tail feathers are about 30% the size of its skeleton
- Feathers could have been used for show (brightly coloured)
- Weighed about 9 kilos and 60% bigger than the final microraptorine discovered
- When it lived, it’s habitat was a broad peninsula with volcanoes, moist forest with numerous conifer and ginkos, dry summers and chilly winters
- Numerous totally different carnivores and herbivores, together with Yutyrannus additionally lived there
- Additionally numerous birds, bugs, primitive mammals, and a few flowering vegetation, lived there (and lakes filled with fish, frogs, and salamanders)
- Unsure what Changyuraptor ate, however fish and chicken bones have been present in its guts, so could have eaten small prey (birds, lizards, salamanders, fish, mammals)
- Changyuraptor is a part of Microraptoria (which implies “small one who seizes”)
- Microraptoria is a clade of dromaeosaurids theropods (they’re probably the most primitive ones)
- They lived 125 million years in the past in China, and will have glided by timber
- They have been normally small, with adults being between 2.5-3 toes lengthy and weighing as much as 2.2 kilos (besides Changyuraptor, which is large by comparability)
- Early birds (like Archaeopteryx) even have lengthy feathers on their hindlimbs, like Microraptor and Changyuraptor, however fashionable birds normally have bald legs and fly with simply two wings (not 4)
- Older dromaeosaurids appeared extra chicken like (Changyuraptor, at 125 million years, regarded extra like a chicken than Velociraptor, at 75 million years)
- Enjoyable truth: The oldest identified dinosaurs date again to 230 million years in the past, and have been present in Madagascar. A workforce of paleontologists, together with researchers from UCSB, found them in 1999. Earlier than they have been discovered, the oldest identified dinosaur was Eoraptor, a 228 million 12 months previous dinosaur whose identify means “daybreak thief”