{
  "id": 14476050,
  "title": "Flightless ancient bird complicates our picture of wing evolution",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/14/flightless-ancient-bird-complicates-our-picture-of-wing-evolution",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-10-14T15:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "New Scientist",
    "slug": "new-scientist",
    "url": "https://www.newscientist.com/article/2593552-flightless-ancient-bird-complicates-our-picture-of-wing-evolution/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A remarkable fossil discovered in China suggests that some of the earliest bird species may not have been capable of flight or might have abandoned it shortly after evolving the ability. Min Wang from the Chinese Academy of Sciences believes that this new discovery, Yuezhuornis yangyuanensis, could challenge the notion that powered flight was the primary driver of the unique anatomy of modern birds. This remarkable find could also alter our perceptions of how bird evolution unfolded.\n\nY. yangyuanensis, estimated to be around half a meter tall and weighing only 800 grams, is believed to have lived in a swampy environment and was likely a proficient runner. The researchers compared its anatomy to nearly 400 living birds and concluded that it was most similar to modern ground-dwelling pheasants. While pheasants can fly in short bursts, they are effectively ground-dwellers, just like Y. yangyuanensis.\n\nInterestingly, some other early birds, such as Archaeopteryx, have forelimbs longer than their hindlimbs, which implies stronger flying abilities. However, Y. yangyuanensis had a distinctive sickle-shaped claw on its second toe, which was highly functional and used for prey capture. This claw is similar to those found in its distant relatives, such as Velociraptor, and is similar to the claws of modern birds that have lost them.\n\nIn addition to its claw and tail, Y. yangyuanensis also had closely packed, serrated teeth, similar to those of deinonychosaur dinosaurs. Unlike modern birds, which typically have just two sets of teeth throughout their lifetime, this ancient bird species had the ability to replace its teeth as needed.\n\nDespite the similarities in certain anatomical features, Y. yangyuanensis shares many characteristics with other birds. Its hip bones and fibula closely resemble those of later Cretaceous birds. The researchers suggest that the evolution of the avian body plan was a more complex and rapid process than previously thought. The emergence of diverse lifestyles, including those not involving flight, challenges the long-held belief that flight played a dominant role in the early evolution of birds.",
  "summary": "Fossils of a ground-dwelling, carnivorous bird with wing anatomy similar to that of a pheasant may force a rewrite of the role of flight in the early evolution of birds",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}