Dino-Era Feathers Trapped in Ancient Amber

The first feathers, it is thought, consisted of a base shaft securing many loose barbs, sort of like strands of hair tied together at one end. Those feathers may have been followed evolutionarily by an intermediate stage, represented by the feathers found in the ancient amber.

The seven feathers "have a structure unknown in bird feathers," but they also have a flattened shaft, which the researchers say is a "prerequisite for using them to fly."

Feather impressions found in other fossils of the dromaeosaur Sinornithosaurus and a still unnamed Chinese theropod had a similar structure.

Kevin Padian, a professor in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of California at Berkeley and a curator at the university's Museum of Paleontology, doesn't rule out that the feathers could have belonged to a dinosaur, but he told Discovery News "their structure does not allow us to conclusively determine the source."

While ancient amber provides a window into ancient life, it's an incomplete one, said Lak. Fossils of dinosaurs, birds and other large creatures will probably never be found in such a way, she noted, simply because they can "escape from the resin before becoming trapped."

Related Links:

Jennifer Viegas' blog: Born Animal

European Synchronotron Radiation Facility

University of California Museum of Paleontology

What Are Feathers?