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66-Million-Year-Old Mystery Solved? Fossilized Bird Feather Reveals How β€˜Modern’ Birds Likely Survived the Dinosaur-Killing Asteroid

12 September 2026 at 15:49

Scientists investigating a 66-million-year-old mystery have revealed that a bird feather embedded in fossilized dinosaur excrement suggests that the ancestors of modern birds who survived the dinosaur-killing asteroid that also wiped out all other ancient bird species benefited from the waterproofing properties of their feathers.

The newly analyzed bird feather fossil that provided the missing clues comes from an extinct bird group called Hesperornithiforms and not from the ancestor of modern birds, Neornithes.

However, the team said subtle differences between the species suggest previous theories crediting adaptation to water diving as the key to Neornithes’ survival were likely on the right track.

Survival of Modern Bird Ancestors Posed a 66-Million-Year-Old Mystery

When a huge piece of space rock slammed into Earth, killing off virtually all dinosaur species save the ancestors of modern birds, the event also left behind a 66-million-year-old mystery. How did these ancient avians survive this apocalyptic event, resulting in every bird species we see today?

Jingmai O’Connor, the associateΒ curator of fossil reptiles at the Field Museum in Chicago, said her career has been spent analyzing fossils to try to answer this single, critical question. However, unlike the new poop-encased bird feathers, most were not so β€˜naturally’ protected from the ravages of time.

β€œIt’s such a beautiful, well-preserved feather, from such an unexpected source, and it’s exciting that it could help us answer this huge question in paleontology,” explained the lead author of a study detailing the new analysis. β€œAs far as I know, no one has ever thought to look for feathers or to study feathers in coprolites, so this project was really exciting.”

Dinosaur Dropping Provided Effective Preservation Medium

Researchers discovered the ancient bird feather in 2016 in Montana. Although she initially suspected it could be a coprolite rock (fossilized feces), O’Connor said she couldn’t confirm the theory for a decade.

66-million-year-old mystery bird feather
David DeMar, Jr., holding the exposed fossil feather in the coprolite fragment on the day of its discovery in 2016. Image Credit: David DeMar, Jr.

The situation changed when O’Connor and Nate Carroll, a co-author of the paper and paleontologist at the Carter County Museum in Ekalaka, Montana, gained access to the micro-CT scanner at USC’s medical campus in Los Angeles, California. According to O’Connor, that’s when β€œthe full feathery fabric of this fossil feces” started to finally reveal itself.

β€œEvery hour processing the data revealed another feather, another scale, another boneβ€”in stunning 3D,” Carrol also recalled.

bird feather solves 66-million-year-old mystery
The fossil feather preserved in dinosaur poop. Image Credit: O’Connor et al.

Along with multiple feathers and tiny fish scales, the ancient dinosaur poop, which may have come from a Tyrannosaurus Rex, also contained legs from a hesperonithiform bird.

O’Connor said hesperonithiforms were ancient aquatic birds with similarities to modern loons. Critically, these cousins of the modern bird ancestor group had evolved specialized feet to hunt for fish by diving deep into the water.

β€œThe feathers showed adaptations for being underwater that we see in living aquatic birds,” O’Connor explained.

Notably, the team said this evolution likely cost ancient hesperonithiforms like the one that was consumed by a dinosaur the ability to fly.

Connection to Modern Birds Offers a SolutionΒ 

Although the bird group represented by the fossilized feather did not survive the dinosaur-killing asteroid, its connection to the ancestor of modern birds appears to support a previously proposed theory that adaptation to water may have helped Neornithes survive. O’Connor said she thinks that small differences in the feathers of the two ancient bird species hold the answer to a 66-million-year-old mystery.

β€œWe think the types of feathers that these birds had, and/or the way they molted those feathers, may have been one of the underlying causes of the selectivity of the end-Cretaceous mass extinction,” the researcher explained, adding that this is β€œessentially why some birds died out and why others survived.”

Specifically, O’Connor pointed to the β€œsmaller, fuzzy, primitive body feathers” found on the extinct bird β€œthat we associate with dinosaurs and enantiornithines” alongside more modern-looking waterproof adaptations.

The team said that these evolutionary relics suggest that hesperornithiforms like the one that left behind its feathers were an evolutionary bridge between older bird groups and the Neornithes that survived the cosmic collision. Even more critically, the team said these earlier feather structures may not have retained heat as effectively as Neornithes feathers, allowing one species to survive the asteroid and another to die in the extreme cold that followed.

β€œThe hesperornithiforms retain primitive feather types that may not have been as efficient for insulation as modern plumaceous feathers, and that could explain why they went extinct along with the enantiornithines,” O’Connor explained.

The study β€œBird feathers from a Late Cretaceous coprolite” was published in Current Biology.Β 

Christopher Plain has spent the last six years as Associate News Editor and Head Science Reporter at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his novels at plainfiction.com, or email him at christopher@thedebrief.org.

Why Were There No Tiny Non-Avian Dinosaurs? Mammals May Have Been to Blame

10 August 2026 at 19:06
Torvosaurus gurneyi. Image credit: Β© Sergey Krasovskiy.

Dinosaurs evolved into some of the largest animals ever to walk the Earth, but a new mathematical model suggests that early mammals may have crowded them out of the ecological niches reserved for the smallest creatures.

The post Why Were There No Tiny Non-Avian Dinosaurs? Mammals May Have Been to Blame appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

Dodo Had Surprisingly Keen Sense of Smell and Owl-Like Vision, New Study Reveals

6 August 2026 at 17:59
The dodo (Raphus cucullatus) by Frederick William Frohawk, 1905.

New research led by University of Lethbridge scientists offers the most detailed look yet at how the dodo (Raphus cucullatus) -- the flightless bird driven to extinction by the 1600s -- actually perceived its world, suggesting the β€˜stupid bird’ had a far more complex sensory life than its reputation implies.

The post Dodo Had Surprisingly Keen Sense of Smell and Owl-Like Vision, New Study Reveals appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

Sunbird, app que leva o iMessage ao Android, retorna com novos recursos e seguranΓ§a aprimorada

5 August 2026 at 20:28

LanΓ§ado originalmente em 2022, o aplicativo Sunbird possui como premissa integrar a experiΓͺncia do iMessage em dispositivos Android. No entanto, algum tempo depois, o serviΓ§o foi encerrado e o app, removido do Google Play devido a preocupaΓ§Γ΅es envolvendo privacidade e seguranΓ§a.

Depois de jΓ‘ ter lanΓ§ado, em 2024, uma versΓ£o beta do seu (entΓ£o) novo aplicativo, a equipe por trΓ‘s do serviΓ§o anunciou o seu retorno definitivo, afirmando que a nova configuraΓ§Γ£o soluciona essas questΓ΅es e que β€œqualquer mensagem Γ© protegida em trΓ’nsito e descartada assim que Γ© entregue”, enquanto as mΓ­dias enviadas ou recebidas sΓ£o excluΓ­das β€œnormalmente em atΓ© 48 horas, e nunca alΓ©m de 72 horas”.

Muitos devem estar se perguntando, porΓ©m, o motivo que leva alguΓ©m a optar pelo Sunbird considerando que a Apple jΓ‘ adotou o suporte ao padrΓ£o RCS 1Rich communications service, ou serviΓ§o de comunicaΓ§Γ£o rico. no iOS, facilitando a comunicaΓ§Γ£o com dispositivos Android pelo app Mensagens (Message). Essa Γ© a explicaΓ§Γ£o do serviΓ§o:

Em 2024, a Apple passou a oferecer suporte ao RCS nos iPhones, o que melhorou alguns aspectos bΓ‘sicos, como a qualidade das fotos e os indicadores de digitaΓ§Γ£o. No entanto, os resultados sΓ£o inconsistentes, e a mudanΓ§a nΓ£o permitiu que usuΓ‘rios de Android se tornassem membros plenos de grupos do iMessage. ReaΓ§Γ΅es, respostas e recursos de grupo do iMessage frequentemente falham quando hΓ‘ um celular Android no chat, e as mensagens enviadas por Androids continuam aparecendo em balΓ΅es verdes.

Segundo Danny Mizrahi, CEO 2Chief executive officer, ou diretor executivo. da Sunbird Messaging, o aplicativo vai alΓ©m de simplesmente oferecer balΓ΅es azuis aos usuΓ‘rios de Android. O executivo afirma que recursos do iMessage (como reaΓ§Γ΅es, respostas, vΓ­deos de alta qualidade e gerenciamento de grupos) funcionam perfeitamente no Sunbird para Android.

O Sunbird tambΓ©m introduz novos recursos, como uma nova caixa de entrada prioritΓ‘ria, com abas β€œPrincipal” e β€œSecundΓ‘ria”, de modo que as conversas individuais e os grupos com quem o usuΓ‘rio mais interage permanecem em destaque na aba β€œPrincipal”, enquanto mensagens rotineiras β€” como cΓ³digos de verificaΓ§Γ£o e contatos de nΓΊmeros desconhecidos β€” sΓ£o direcionadas Γ  aba β€œSecundΓ‘ria”.

Caixa de entrada do Sunbird
DivulgaΓ§Γ£o/Sunbird

Futuramente, o app ganharΓ‘ ainda a Sunbird Intelligence, um conjunto de recursos de inteligΓͺncia artificial que operam localmente. Entre as funΓ§Γ΅es estΓ‘ o β€œCatch Me Up”, que oferecerΓ‘ aos usuΓ‘rios um resumo consolidado de tudo o que perderam em suas conversas. Ele tambΓ©m terΓ‘ um assistente integrado que poderΓ‘ realizar aΓ§Γ΅es como redigir uma resposta ou mover uma conversa entre categorias.

Assistente de IA do app Sunbird
DivulgaΓ§Γ£o/Sunbird

Ainda nΓ£o se trata, porΓ©m, da versΓ£o final do Sunbird, e sim da versΓ£o β€œbeta aberto”; no entanto, nΓ£o hΓ‘ mais um processo de inscriΓ§Γ£o nem lista de espera. Ademais, agora o aplicativo conta com opΓ§Γ΅es de assinatura interna (US$3 mensais ou US$25 anuais).

O Sunbird jΓ‘ estΓ‘ disponΓ­vel no Google Play.

via AppleInsider

Notas de rodapΓ©

  • 1
    Rich communications service, ou serviΓ§o de comunicaΓ§Γ£o rico.
  • 2
    Chief executive officer, ou diretor executivo.

Apple TV divulga trailer de β€œA Dinastia β€” UConn Huskies”; docussΓ©rie estrearΓ‘ em 21 de agosto

17 July 2026 at 18:06

O Apple TV divulgou o trailer de β€œA Dinastia β€” UConn Huskies” (β€œThe Dynasty: UConn Huskies”), sua nova sΓ©rie documental que narra a trajetΓ³ria de 40 anos do renomado programa de basquete feminino da Universidade de Connecticut (UConn) sob o comando do tΓ©cnico Geno Auriemma, membro do Hall da Fama.

A produΓ§Γ£o, dividida em trΓͺs partes, estrearΓ‘ mundialmente no dia 21 de agosto (uma sexta-feira).

Twelve championships don't happen by accident. Go inside one of college basketball's most prestigious programs.

The Dynasty: #UConnHuskies β€” August 21 on Apple TV pic.twitter.com/noP5RuttEl

β€” Apple TV (@AppleTV) July 17, 2026
Doze tΓ­tulos nΓ£o acontecem por acaso. ConheΓ§a por dentro um dos programas mais prestigiados do basquete universitΓ‘rio.
A Dinastia: #UConnHuskies β€” 21 de agosto na Apple TV.

β€œThe Dynasty: UConn Huskies” narra a ascensΓ£o do programa mais dominante na histΓ³ria do basquete universitΓ‘rio nos Estados Unidos. Com entrevistas exclusivas com a equipe campeΓ£ nacional de 2025 e participaΓ§Γ΅es de figuras do basquete da UConn, a sΓ©rie explora a busca pela excelΓͺncia, as expectativas que acompanham o sucesso duradouro e as pessoas que mantiveram esse padrΓ£o ao longo das geraΓ§Γ΅es.

A sΓ©rie reflete sobre o legado que construiu o programa e oferece um olhar raro de bastidores sobre as jogadoras que dΓ£o continuidade a essa histΓ³ria, por meio de conversas aprofundadas com tΓ©cnicos, atletas, ex-jogadoras, rivais e jornalistas de vΓ‘rias geraΓ§Γ΅es do basquete da UConn, incluindo KK Arnold, Auriemma, Sue Bird, Paige Bueckers, Jim Calhoun, Swin Cash, Chris Dailey, Mickie DeMoss, Jana El Alfy, Jamelle Elliott, Azzi Fudd, Jeff Goldberg, Sally Jenkins, Steve Kerr, Rebecca Lobo, Jackie MacMullan, Maya Moore, Alexa Philippou, Shea Ralph, Semeka Randall, Jennifer Rizzotti, Breanna Stewart, Sarah Strong, Diana Taurasi e Tamika Williams-Jeter.

Com direΓ§Γ£o e produΓ§Γ£o executiva de Matthew Hamachek (vencedor do Emmy) e Erica Sashin (indicada ao Emmy), β€œThe Dynasty: UConn Huskies” tambΓ©m conta com Jesse Sisgold, Jason T. Reed, Jon Weinbach, Lauren Gaffney, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, Grant Jones, Jon Liebman e Zoe Rogovin como produtores executivos.

O AppleΒ TV estΓ‘ disponΓ­vel no aplicativo AppleΒ TV em mais de 100Β paΓ­ses e regiΓ΅es, seja em iPhones, iPads, AppleΒ TVs, Macs, dispositivos Android, smart TVs ou online β€” alΓ©m de tambΓ©m estar em aparelhos como Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast com Google TV, consoles PlayStation e Xbox. O serviΓ§o custa R$29,90 por mΓͺs, com um perΓ­odo de teste gratuito de 7Β dias. Por tempo limitado, quem comprar e ativar um novo iPhone, iPad, AppleΒ TV ou Mac ganha 3Β meses do AppleΒ TV. Ele tambΓ©m faz parte do pacote de assinaturas da empresa,Β oΒ Apple One.

NOTA DE TRANSPARÊNCIA: O MacMagazine recebe uma pequena comissΓ£o sobre vendas concluΓ­das por meio de links deste post, mas vocΓͺ, como consumidor, nΓ£o paga nada mais pelos produtos/serviΓ§os usando os nossos links de afiliado.

Scientists Create Bio-Inspired Robots to Hack the Hovering Powers of This Exceptional Species to Build Better UAVs

29 June 2026 at 14:09

An innovative new approach to building safer, more efficient small unmanned aerial vehicles is taking a cue from nature.

Anticipating worsening turbulence due to environmental concerns in the coming years, engineers studying the unmatched hovering ability of kestrels hope to reverse engineer the secrets of their exceptional flight capabilities to help assemble better future drones.

Smaller drones, known as sUAVs, have a range of different applications that include delivery services, photography, and more. However, wind conditions can often cause turbulence that either grounds them temporarily or, when caught off guard, can lead to their destruction.

Now, a team of researchers has published their findings in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface, which details an ongoing collaboration between RMIT University and the University of Bristol that seeks to overcome such issues by building drones that operate more like some of nature’s best flyers.

Specifically, the nankeen kestrel is an avian species whose amazing prowess while flying during adverse conditions still confounds researchers. To unravel the secrets of their flight, the researchers used motion capture technologies made possible in RMIT’s special Industrial Wind Tunnel facility, one of the largest such facilities anywhere on the Australian continent.

β€œBirds don’t rely on a single response to wind gusts,” according to RMIT researcher Matt Penn. β€œThey constantly adjust their wings and tails to stay balanced, while the natural flexibility of their feathers and joints helps absorb sudden changes in airflow.”

β€œThey can also sense disruptions very quickly, which allows them to respond almost instantly and maintain control,” added Penn, one of the team members who co-led the studies into how birds can cope with turbulence.

According to Penn and his colleagues, these birds possess a range of unique strategies that help them overcome the dangers of turbulence, which help them navigate under conditions that would cause most sUAVs to come tumbling from the sky.

To attempt to understand what makes kestrels such adept fliers, the team created a robotic replica to mimic some of their key flight movements and characteristics, which allowed the team to unravel some of the secrets to how these incredible birds perform.

β€œBy creating a robot replica, we were able to measure how specific movements were contributing to steadiness in flight,” said Dr Mario Martinez Groves-Raines, a researcher now with the Royal Veterinary College in London, adding that precision measurements of kestrel flight that normally could not be achieved in nature were possible using the team’s robotic version.

β€œWe uncovered several unique techniques behind the kestrel’s impressive stability,” Groves-Raines said. β€œMany of these techniques have the potential to improve [the] manoeuvrability of small aircraft, which encounter similar challenges to kestrels.”

β€œThis research shows what’s possible when engineers look to nature for solutions,” added RMIT senior researcher Associate Professor Abdulghani Mohamed.

β€œOur findings open new pathways for designing aircraft that can better handle turbulence.”

Going forward, the researchers say they hope to apply their findings toward the construction of novel sUAVs, which can help future drones operate safely and more efficiently, much like their agile avian forebears.

Ultimately, similar engineering in the coming years may have applications that extend well beyond just drone flight, and could also help to ensure safe operations for much larger aircraft.

The team reported their findings in a pair of new studies, β€˜Bridging the Gap: A Review of Gust Mitigation in Birds and Small UAVs’, and β€˜Stability and control benefits of coupled wing and tail morphing in kestrel wind-hovering flight explored using a robot replica’, both of which were published in the Journal of The Royal Society Interface.

Micah Hanks is the Editor-in-Chief and Co-Founder of The Debrief. A longtime reporter on science, defense, and technology with a focus on space and astronomy, he can be reached atΒ micah@thedebrief.org. Follow him on XΒ @MicahHanks, and atΒ micahhanks.com.

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