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Big Bird Dazzles Paleontologists

Posted Jun 14, 07 2:27 PM CDT in World,  Science & Health,  Arts & Living 

(Newser) – The largest birdlike creature on record stood over 16 feet tall, weighed a ton and a half, and had sharp claws but no teeth. The Chinese paleontologist who unearthed the creature's thigh bone wasn't sure what it was, he tells the San Francisco Chronicle, but as he listed the possibilities for a colleague he realized: "We have a gigantic chicken!"

The discovery of Gigantoraptor erlianensis, reported yesterday in the journal Nature, raises questions about dinosaur evolution. Most dinosaurs got smaller as they evolved and became more birdlike, so this denizen of the fossil-rich Gobi desert is a bit of a mystery. "When it comes to the diversity of dinosaurs," says one expert, "we're still just scratching the surface."

Source San Francisco Chronicle

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Journalists examine the replica of a fossilized skull, a small scale model and actual fossilized leg bones from the Gigantoraptor erlianensis, whose fossilized bones were uncovered recently in northern...   (Associated Press)
One idea of what the Gigantoraptor may have looked like.   (Associated Press)
Gigantoraptor compared to man.   (Associated Press)
A Chinese man stands near the replica of a fossilized skull and a small scale model depicting the Gigantoraptor erlianensis, whose fossilized bones were uncovered recently in northern China at an unveiling...   (Associated Press)
A Chinese woman stands near a replica of a fossilized skull and small scale model depicting the Gigantoraptor erlianensis, whose fossilized bones were uncovered recently in northern China at an unveiling...   (Associated Press)
Vendors offer a range of transport while waiting for tourists...   (Getty Images)
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science  • evolution  • birds  • paleontology  • dinosaurs  • Nature  • Gobi desert  • discoveries


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