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ScienceQuiet 7d · day 14

Best-preserved dinosaur-age feather found in 66-million-year-old T. rex droppings

Scientists discover pristine bird feather in fossilized dinosaur feces, offering clues to why modern birds survived the mass extinction.

newest coverage 6d agosummary written 13d ago46 pieces1.2k likes & upvotes1 comments NewswiresBlueskyGoogle NewsHacker NewsMastodon

What to know

  • A perfectly preserved 66-million-year-old bird feather found in fossilized dinosaur feces at Hell Creek Formation provides the best-preserved feathers ever recovered from the dinosaur age.
  • The feather belonged to a hesperornithiform—an extinct aquatic bird—that had a mix of modern waterproof wing feathers and primitive, poorly-insulating body feathers.
  • Researchers propose that inferior feather insulation made hesperornithiforms vulnerable to the extreme cold triggered by the asteroid impact, while ancestors of modern birds with superior plumage survived the mass extinction.

“I was crawling up a rocky outcrop collecting fish fossils when I came across a dark, reddish-brown nodule about half the size of a golf ball”

David DeMar Jr., Paleontologist, University of Washington · ABC Australia ↗

Jingmai O'Connor Lead researcher, Field Museum ChicagoDavid DeMar Jr. Discoverer, University of Washington

Best-preserved dinosaur-age feather found in 66-million-year-old T. rex droppings
Nautilus

How it unfolded 1 development · click the chart to see its coverage articlesposts

Peak 13 pieces in 4h at Sep 10, 10 AM; 46 pieces over 14 days (38 articles · 8 posts) Sep 10, 10 AM — 13 pieces · 12 articles · 1 post — Newswires 7, Google News 5, Bluesky 1Sep 10, 2 PM — 4 pieces · 4 articles — Google News 4Sep 10, 6 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Hacker News 1Sep 10, 10 PM — quietSep 11, 2 AM — quietSep 11, 6 AM — quietSep 11, 10 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 11, 2 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Sep 11, 6 PM — 3 pieces · 3 articles — Google News 2, Newswires 1Sep 11, 10 PM — quietSep 12, 2 AM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Sep 12, 6 AM — 1 piece · 1 article — Newswires 1Sep 12, 10 AM — quietSep 12, 2 PM — quietSep 12, 6 PM — quietSep 12, 10 PM — quietSep 13, 2 AM — quietSep 13, 6 AM — 2 pieces · 2 articles — Google News 1, Newswires 1Sep 13, 10 AM — quietSep 13, 2 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Bluesky 1Sep 13, 6 PM — quietSep 13, 10 PM — quietSep 14, 2 AM — quietSep 14, 6 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 14, 10 AM — 3 pieces · 3 articles — Google News 3Sep 14, 2 PM — quietSep 14, 6 PM — quietSep 14, 10 PM — quietSep 15, 2 AM — quietSep 15, 6 AM — quietSep 15, 10 AM — 3 pieces · 3 articles — Google News 3Sep 15, 2 PM — 3 pieces · 2 articles · 1 post — Google News 2, Bluesky 1Sep 15, 6 PM — quietSep 15, 10 PM — 3 pieces · 3 articles — Google News 3Sep 16, 2 AM — quietSep 16, 6 AM — quietSep 16, 10 AM — 1 piece · 1 article — Newswires 1Sep 16, 2 PM — quietSep 16, 6 PM — quietSep 16, 10 PM — quietSep 17, 2 AM — quietSep 17, 6 AM — 4 pieces · 2 articles · 2 posts — Mastodon 2, Google News 1, Newswires 1Sep 17, 10 AM — quietSep 17, 2 PM — quietSep 17, 6 PM — quietSep 17, 10 PM — quietSep 18, 2 AM — quietSep 18, 6 AM — quietSep 18, 10 AM — quietSep 18, 2 PM — quietSep 18, 6 PM — quietSep 18, 10 PM — quietSep 19, 2 AM — quietSep 19, 6 AM — quietSep 19, 10 AM — quietSep 19, 2 PM — quietSep 19, 6 PM — quietSep 19, 10 PM — quietSep 20, 2 AM — quietSep 20, 6 AM — quietSep 20, 10 AM — quietSep 20, 2 PM — quietSep 20, 6 PM — quietSep 20, 10 PM — quietSep 21, 2 AM — quietSep 21, 6 AM — quietSep 21, 10 AM — quietSep 21, 2 PM — quietSep 21, 6 PM — quietSep 21, 10 PM — quietSep 22, 2 AM — quietSep 22, 6 AM — quietSep 22, 10 AM — quietSep 22, 2 PM — quietSep 22, 6 PM — quietSep 22, 10 PM — quietYesterday, 2 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 10 AM — quietYesterday, 2 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 10 PM — quietToday, 2 AM — quietToday, 6 AM — quiet 1
Sep 11Sep 12Sep 13Sep 14Sep 15Sep 16Sep 17Sep 18Sep 19Sep 20Sep 21Sep 22now · 8:50 AM ET
  1. 1

    Researchers propose feather quality as factor in bird extinction survival

    O'Connor hypothesizes that hesperornithiforms' primitive body feathers were inadequate insulators during the extreme post-asteroid conditions, unlike the superior plumage of Neornithes ancestors that survived the mass extinction.

    “Maybe these primitive feathers were good enough to keep them warm during the greenhouse world of the Mesozoic, but not good enough to keep them warm during this environmental catastrophe that was triggered by this impact event.”
    — Jingmai O'Connor
    1. 12 outlets Feather trapped in dinosaur droppings provides new clues about why some birds survived extinction

      first by El Pais English, 13d ago · also Times of India, Good News Network, The Brasilians, NPR Science, NCPR: North Country Public Radio, NPR +5

      9 more headlines
    • news.abc.net.au

      Stunning feather discovered in fossilised dinosaur poo is first of its kind

      news.abc.net.auBluesky13d ago1.1k▲view on Bluesky ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch
    • tksst@fediscience.org

      🪶 NEW: A cherry-sized nodule found in # Montana ’s # HellCreek Formation held a 66-million-year-old feather, the best ever preserved from the age of # dinosaurs . Researchers concluded it came from an aquatic diving bird, likely eaten by a large # predator whose fossilized dung encased it along with # fish scales and bone fragments. The team says…

      tksst@fediscience.orgMastodon12d ago14▲view on Mastodon ↗
    all of them →
  2. background

    Research team publishes feather analysis in Current Biology — Jingmai O'Connor and colleagues used micro-CT scans and 3D surface scanning to analyze the coprolite's contents, including a 9.3-centimeter-long primary feather from a hesperornithiform bird with modern water-repellent structure but primitive body feathers.

  3. background

    Paleontologist discovers feather in fossilized coprolite at Hell Creek Formation — David DeMar Jr. of the University of Washington was collecting fish fossils in northeastern Montana when he found a broken coprolite with a feather clearly visible along its fractured surface.

Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet

  1. 4 outlets 66-million-year-old feather in dinosaur poop may reveal why birds survived the asteroid

    first by Science Daily, 12d ago · also CTV News, KQ2, NDTV

    2 more headlines
  2. 3 outlets Exquisite 66-million-year-old bird feather preserved in dinosaur dropping

    first by New Scientist, 13d ago · also The Times, GB News

    3 more headlines
  3. 3 outlets How Did Birds Outlive the Other Dinosaurs?

    first by Nautilus, 13d ago · also Chronicle-Tribune, La Brújula Verde

    2 more headlines
  4. 2 outlets Feather discovered in fossilised dinosaur poo is first of its kind - ABC News & Headlines

    first by Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 13d ago · also ABC Australia

    1 more headline

and 1 smaller piece

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