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Article: Archaeopteryx.(facts about prehistoric bird)
- Article from:
- Ranger Rick
- Article date:
- October 1, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 National Wildlife Federation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Archie Who?
Archaeopteryx (ar-kee-OP-ter-ix) lived 150 million years ago during the Jurassic Period. It shared the Earth with dinosaurs and flying reptiles known as pterosaurs (TARE-uh-sars). Seven fossils of "Archie" (like the one shown below) have been found in southern Germany.
This crow-sized creature was one of the first birds on Earth. It had lots of body parts that modern birds have, such as feathers and a wishbone. It also had many parts that were not bird-like. Some scientists think these parts show that Archie evolved from some kind of small dinosaur. (Evolved means it changed over many years.) But others say Archie evolved from the ancestors of ...