Archaeopteryx lithographica
Pronunciación: AR-kee-OP-ter-iks lith-oh-GRAF-ih-kah
Avialae · Archaeopterygidae
A raven-sized feathered theropod from the Late Jurassic limestones of Solnhofen, Bavaria. Usually placed at the base of Avialae, the bird lineage, but it is a transitional animal, not the ancestor of modern birds.
- Feathered
- Bipedal
- Exceptional preservation
- Famous specimen
- Transitional fossil
- Período
- Jurásico· Tithoniense
- Dieta
- Carnívoro
- Longitud
- 0,5 m
- Masa
- Desconocido
- Ubicación
- Germany, Bavaria
Respuestas rápidas
- ¿Qué tamaño tenía Archaeopteryx lithographica?
- Archaeopteryx lithographica medía unos 0,5 m de largo. Alcanzaba unos 0,1–0,2 m de altura a la cadera. (Wellnhofer 2009; Paul 2016)
- ¿Cuándo vivió Archaeopteryx lithographica?
- Archaeopteryx lithographica vivió durante el Jurásico Superior, hace unos 149,2–145 millones de años. (Cohen et al. 2023; Rauhut et al. 2018)
- ¿Dónde se han encontrado fósiles de Archaeopteryx lithographica?
- Se han encontrado fósiles de Archaeopteryx lithographica en Solnhofen Formation (Bavaria) y Germany. (von Meyer 1861; Xu et al. 2011)
- ¿Qué comía Archaeopteryx lithographica?
- Archaeopteryx lithographica era carnívoro. (von Meyer 1861; Xu et al. 2011)
- ¿Quién nombró a Archaeopteryx lithographica y cuándo?
- Archaeopteryx lithographica fue descrito por Hermann von Meyer en 1861. (von Meyer 1861)
En esta página
- Período
- Jurásico149,2–145 Ma
- Dieta
- Carnívoro
- Longitud
- 0,5 m
- Masa
- Desconocido
- Ubicación
- Germany
- Clasificación
- Avialae · Archaeopterygidae
- Descrito
- 1861, Hermann von Meyer
Resumen
Este contenido está disponible en inglés.
Archaeopteryx lithographica lived about 150 million years ago, in the Late Jurassic, on islands in a warm lagoon sea that covered what is now southern Germany. Its fossils come from the fine lithographic limestones around Solnhofen and Eichstätt in Bavaria. Hermann von Meyer named it in 1861 from a single feather; a nearly complete skeleton, now in London, turned up the same year.
It mixed features of birds and of other small theropods: flight feathers on arms and tail, but also teeth, clawed fingers and a long bony tail. Found two years after On the Origin of Species, it became the classic example of a transitional fossil. Later specimens, such as the one described by Foth, Tischlinger and Rauhut (2014), show pennaceous feathers on the legs as well.
It is popularly called the "first bird", but that phrase needs care. Most analyses place it at or near the base of Avialae, the group that includes modern birds, yet Xu et al. (2011) recovered it closer to Deinonychus and Velociraptor. It is best read as an early member of the bird lineage, not the direct ancestor of living birds, and many feathered dinosaurs from China now blur the line it once drew.
Significado del nombre
From Greek archaios ("ancient") and pteryx ("feather, wing"); lithographica refers to the lithographic limestone it was found in (von Meyer 1861).
Biología y evidencia
Lo que piensan los científicos sobre cómo vivía este animal y qué tan sólida es la evidencia de cada idea.
Locomoción
Archaeopteryx could fly actively, probably in short bursts.
Nivel de evidencia: Evidencia moderadaIts feathers have the asymmetric shape of flight feathers and its wing bones match those of birds that flap in short bursts. Its shoulder was less advanced than modern birds', so it was not a strong flier.
Evidencia a favor / en contra · 2
Evidencia a favor
Histología · Archaeopteryx wing bone cross-sections
Synchrotron scans of wing bones show thin walls and a geometry closer to birds that flap in short bursts than to non-flying animals.
Impresión de plumas · Archaeopteryx flight feather impressions
Asymmetric flight feathers on the wings and a pair of rows along the tail, preserved in the limestone around the skeletons.
Espécimen: NHMUK PV OR 37001 “London specimen”, MB.Av.101 “Berlin specimen”
Piel y cobertura
At least some of the feathers of Archaeopteryx were black.
Nivel de evidencia: Evidencia moderadaPigment structures preserved in one isolated feather match those of black feathers in living birds. It says nothing about the rest of the plumage, and the feather's owner is assumed to be Archaeopteryx.
Evidencia a favor / en contra · 1
Evidencia a favor
Impresión de plumas · Melanosomes in the isolated Archaeopteryx feather
Fossil pigment structures (melanosomes) in the 1861 feather, compared with living birds, indicate a dark, probably matte black colour.
Plumas
Archaeopteryx had flight feathers on its arms, tail and legs.
Nivel de evidencia: Evidencia directaThe feathers are preserved as impressions in the fine limestone, including asymmetric wing feathers like those of flying birds and, in one specimen, pennaceous leg feathers.
Evidencia a favor / en contra · 1
Evidencia a favor
Impresión de plumas · Archaeopteryx flight feather impressions
Asymmetric flight feathers on the wings and a pair of rows along the tail, preserved in the limestone around the skeletons.
Espécimen: NHMUK PV OR 37001 “London specimen”, MB.Av.101 “Berlin specimen”
Otros
Archaeopteryx is an early member of the bird lineage (Avialae).
Nivel de evidencia: Evidencia moderadaMost family-tree analyses put it at the base of the bird lineage, but some place it closer to Velociraptor. It is best read as a close relative near the origin of birds, not the ancestor of living birds.
Evidencia a favor / en contra · 1
Evidencia a favor
Inferencia filogenética · Phylogenetic analyses placing Archaeopteryx
Most analyses recover Archaeopteryx as the earliest avialan; Xu et al. (2011) recovered it among deinonychosaurs instead.
Tamaño
- Longitud
- 0,5 m
- Altura
- 0,2 mrango publicado 0,1–0,2 m
- Masa
- Desconocido
(1,6 pies)
Basado en Largest known specimens
(0,5 pies)
Basado en Berlin and Thermopolis specimens
Línea de tiempo
Períodos: Tithoniense (149,2–145 Ma), Jurásico Superior (161,5–145 Ma)
Ages are the ICS 2023/09 bounds of the Tithonian, the stage(s) the fossils are assigned to; they bracket the record and are not dated first/last appearances. Rauhut et al. (2018) place the oldest specimen (Schamhaupten) at the Kimmeridgian/Tithonian boundary; most specimens are early Tithonian.
Ubicación
Formaciones
- Solnhofen Formation · Bavaria
- Langenaltheim near Solnhofen, Bavaria · Solnhofen Formation · Bavaria · posición aproximada
Estos son los lugares donde se han encontrado fósiles, no toda el área donde vivía el animal.
Ecosistema
Vivió en: Solnhofen archipelago
hace 152–150 millones de años · isla, margen marino, otro
Warm, shallow lagoons behind reefs, dotted with low, dry islands, on the northern margin of the Tethys Sea in the Late Jurassic. The stagnant, salty bottom water let fine lime mud bury carcasses in exceptional detail.
Mismo ecosistema
Clasificación
- cladoDinosauria
- cladoSaurischia
- cladoTheropoda
- cladoCoelurosauria
- cladoManiraptora
- cladoAvialae
- familiaArchaeopterygidae
- géneroArchaeopteryx
- especieArchaeopteryx lithographica
Estado taxonómico: Válido
Registro fósil
| Número de catálogo | Estado | Institución | Hallado |
|---|---|---|---|
| NHMUK PV OR 37001 “London specimen” | Neotipo | Natural History Museum, London (NHMUK) | 1861 |
| MB.Av.101 “Berlin specimen” | Espécimen referido | Museum für Naturkunde (MB) | 1876 |
| WDC-CSG-100 “Thermopolis specimen” | Espécimen referido | Wyoming Dinosaur Center (WDC) | — |
Lo que se ha encontrado
Neotipo: NHMUK PV OR 37001 “London specimen”
- Conservado
- Parcial
- Reconstruido
- Desconocido / no registrado
Neotipo: NHMUK PV OR 37001 “London specimen”
Región por región (tabla)
| Región | Estado |
|---|---|
| Skull | Parcial · Braincase only. |
| Mandible | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Teeth | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Cervical vertebrae | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Dorsal vertebrae | Conservado |
| Sacrum | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Caudal vertebrae | Conservado · Long bony tail with feathers. |
| Ribs | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Gastralia | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Scapula / shoulder girdle | Conservado · Furcula. |
| Humerus | Conservado |
| Forearm (radius / ulna) | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Hand (manus) | Conservado |
| Pelvis | Conservado |
| Femur | Conservado |
| Tibia / fibula | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Foot (pes) | Conservado |
Espécimen referido: MB.Av.101 “Berlin specimen”
Región por región (tabla)
| Región | Estado |
|---|---|
| Skull | Conservado |
| Mandible | Conservado |
| Teeth | Conservado |
| Cervical vertebrae | Conservado |
| Dorsal vertebrae | Conservado |
| Sacrum | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Caudal vertebrae | Conservado |
| Ribs | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Gastralia | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Scapula / shoulder girdle | Conservado |
| Humerus | Conservado |
| Forearm (radius / ulna) | Conservado |
| Hand (manus) | Conservado |
| Pelvis | Conservado |
| Femur | Conservado |
| Tibia / fibula | Conservado |
| Foot (pes) | Conservado |
Espécimen referido: WDC-CSG-100 “Thermopolis specimen”
Región por región (tabla)
| Región | Estado |
|---|---|
| Skull | Conservado |
| Mandible | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Teeth | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Cervical vertebrae | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Dorsal vertebrae | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Sacrum | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Caudal vertebrae | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Ribs | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Gastralia | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Scapula / shoulder girdle | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Humerus | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Forearm (radius / ulna) | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Hand (manus) | Conservado |
| Pelvis | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Femur | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Tibia / fibula | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Foot (pes) | Conservado |
Descubrimiento
- Año de descripción
- 1861
- Descrito por
- Hermann von Meyer
- Espécimen tipo
- NHMUK PV OR 37001 (London specimen; neotype replacing the original isolated feather)
Cronología del descubrimiento
1861 · Espécimen recuperado
The London specimen is found
A nearly complete skeleton with feathers is found near Langenaltheim and sold to the British Museum in 1862.
1861 · Primer material hallado
The Archaeopteryx feather is named
Hermann von Meyer names Archaeopteryx lithographica from an isolated feather found near Solnhofen.
Personas: Hermann von Meyer
1863 · Estudio importante
Owen describes the London specimen
Richard Owen describes the skeleton and interprets it as a bird.
Personas: Richard Owen
1876 · Espécimen recuperado
The Berlin specimen is found
The most complete specimen, with its skull, is found near Eichstätt.
2011 · Revisión
London specimen fixed as neotype
The ICZN designates the London skeleton as the name-bearing type, replacing the isolated feather.
Fuentes
- Cohen, K. M., Harper, D. A. T., Gibbard, P. L. & Car, N. (2023). International Chronostratigraphic Chart (v2023/09). International Commission on Stratigraphy. https://stratigraphy.org/ICSchart/ChronostratChart2023-09.pdf (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- Foth, C., Tischlinger, H. & Rauhut, O. W. M. (2014). New specimen of Archaeopteryx provides insights into the evolution of pennaceous feathers. Nature 511: 79-82. doi:10.1038/nature13467 (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- Paul, G. S. (2016). The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs (2nd edition). Princeton University Press.
- Rauhut, O. W. M., Foth, C. & Tischlinger, H. (2018). The oldest Archaeopteryx (Theropoda: Avialiae): a new specimen from the Kimmeridgian/Tithonian boundary of Schamhaupten, Bavaria. PeerJ 6: e4191. doi:10.7717/peerj.4191 (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- von Meyer, H. (1861). Archaeopteryx lithographica (Vogel-Feder) und Pterodactylus von Solenhofen. Neues Jahrbuch für Mineralogie, Geognosie, Geologie und Petrefakten-Kunde 1861: 678-679.
- Wellnhofer, P. (2009). Archaeopteryx: The Icon of Evolution. Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, München.
- Xu, X., You, H., Du, K. & Han, F. (2011). An Archaeopteryx-like theropod from China and the origin of Avialae. Nature 475: 465-470. doi:10.1038/nature10288 (se abre en una pestaña nueva)