Flying dinosaurs : how fearsome reptiles became birds /
The discovery of stunning, feathered dinosaur fossils coming out of China since 2006 suggests that these creatures were much more bird-like than paleontologists previously imagined. Further evidence - bones, genetics, eggs, behavior, and more - demonstrates a seamless transition from fleet-footed ca...
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| Format: | eBook |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
New York :
Columbia University Press,
2014.
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| Online Access: | Connect to the full text of this electronic book |
| Summary: | The discovery of stunning, feathered dinosaur fossils coming out of China since 2006 suggests that these creatures were much more bird-like than paleontologists previously imagined. Further evidence - bones, genetics, eggs, behavior, and more - demonstrates a seamless transition from fleet-footed carnivores to the ancestors of modern birds. Mixing colorful portraits with news on the latest fossil findings and interviews with leading paleontologists in the United States, China, Europe, and Australia, award-winning journalist John Pickrell details dinosaurs' development of flight. This special capacity introduced a whole new range of abilities for these animals and helped them survive a mass extinction when thousands of other dinosaur species that once populated the Earth did not. Pickrell also turns his journalistic eye toward the stories behind the latest discoveries, investigating the role of the Chinese black market in trading fossils, the controversies among various dinosaur hunters, the interference of national governments intent on protecting scientific information, and the race to publish findings first that make this research such a dynamic area of science. |
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| Item Description: | Electronic resource. |
| Physical Description: | 1 online resource (xxiv, 215 pages) : illustrations |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| ISBN: | 9780231538787 (electronic bk.) 0231538782 (electronic bk.) |