Birds are the only dinosaur lineage that survived until today. About 66 million years ago at the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K–Pg) boundary, a mass extinction event destroyed all non-avian dinosaurs, ...

Birds are the most diverse land vertebrate on the planet, and now scientists have constructed a complete evolutionary tree of the 11,000 or so known species. This data came from hundreds of studies ...

Using cutting-edge computational methods and supercomputing infrastructure, researchers have built the largest and most detailed bird family tree to date -- an intricate chart delineating 93 million ...

Just as bird watchers may use binoculars to add to their species lists, scientists interested in bird evolution may use computational tools to clarify avian lineages. Indeed, such tools have enabled ...

The study of palaeontology has long provided a window into the dynamic evolutionary history of dinosaurs and their avian descendants. Recent research has uncovered intricate details regarding the ...

Gear-obsessed editors choose every product we review. We may earn commission if you buy from a link. Why Trust Us? For years, scientists have split neoaves (which make up 95 percent of bird species) ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. Fossil discoveries unlock chapters of our planet’s storied ...

Scientists have long wondered whether evolution would follow the same path if history had a chance for a “do-over.” New research suggests that it does, when it comes to the brain and its regulation of ...

The early evolution of birds has long been a mystery due to the limited fossil record. Two bird fossils dating back 149 million years to the Jurassic era have been unearthed in Fujian Province, ...