5 подписчиков
It is known that birds descended from theropod dinosaurs, whose features, especially walking, animals took from them. However, there are differences: the hind limb of birds is more bent, and they move because of bending at the knee. Dinosaurs had to move by retracting the hip.
To create the gait of dinosaurs in modern birds, scientists conducted a curious experiment. They raised three groups of chickens with four individuals in each. In the experimental group, chickens were put on artificial tails from the second day after birth, which had a mass of about 15% of the animal's weight. This distribution of mass was probably also observed in theropods.
The other two groups were controls: four chickens remained unchanged, and four more scientists weighted the body by 15%, adding a load on the back. The researchers wrote that they paid special attention to how convenient it is for birds to exercise. It turned out that the chickens that were in the experimental group got used to their tails pretty quickly and showed no signs of discomfort.
At the age of 12 weeks, the gait of all the birds was captured on camera and analyzed. It turned out that in animals that have been wearing an artificial tail since birth, the structure of the leg bones is seriously different from the control groups and is very similar to that characteristic of theropods. The researchers said that with the help of such tails, it is possible to study the gait of dinosaurs on birds.
1 минута
19 декабря 2021