Tag Archive for 'Molt'

This fossil of Anchiornis huxleyi exhibits nearly complete wings and preservation of feather coloration, allowing for a detailed identification of wing morphology. Image credit: Kiat et al., doi: 10.1038/s42003-025-09019-2.

Jurassic Dinosaur Fossils Shed Light on Evolution of Flight

Dec 18, 2025 by News Staff

Paleontologists have examined the 160-million-year-old fossils of Anchiornis huxleyi, a species of non-avian theropod dinosaur from the Late Jurassic Tiaojishan...

A small piece of Burmese amber preserving feathers interpreted as belonging to a juvenile enantiornithine bird: (A) amber with the dorsal surface of the feather cluster exposed; (B) ventral surface exposed; (C) close up of the ventral surface (region marked in B); (D) close up of the ventral surface region marked in (C); (E) close up of the ventral surface region marked in (D); (F) close up of the dorsal surface marked in (A, larger rectangle); (G) close up of the dorsal surface marked in (A, smaller rectangle). Dotted lines indicate desiccation surfaces. Scale bars - 0.5 mm in (A, B, D and F), 0.1 mm in (C); 0.3 mm in (E); and 0.2 mm in (G). Anatomical abbreviations: ipl - immature plumaceous feather; ipn - immature pennaceous feather; ks - keratinous sheath; pf - probable filamentous ‘protofeathers.’ Image credit: O’Connor et al., doi: 10.1016/j.cretres.2023.105572.

99-Million-Year-Old Burmese Amber Preserves Feathers of Immature Enantiornithine Bird

Jul 7, 2023 by News Staff

The specimen provides the first unequivocal evidence of immature feathers in the Mesozoic fossil record. A small piece of Burmese amber preserving feathers...

Primary sequential molt in Microraptor; the arrow indicates the location of the molt-related gap within the primary feathers. Scale bar - 10 cm. Image credit: Y. Kiat & J.K. O’Connor, doi: 10.1038/s42003-023-05048-x.

Rarity of Molt Evidence in Feathered Dinosaurs Suggests Annual Molt Evolved Later among Flying Birds

Jul 6, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Feathers are a primitive trait among pennaraptoran dinosaurs, which today are represented by living birds, the only clade of dinosaurs to survive the end-Cretaceous...