Skip to content

SciTech

Ancestor of hummingbird and swift

by Dave Armstrong 02 May 2013
Ancestor of hummingbird and swift

This significant little fossil from the Early Eocene shows perfectly how swifts and hummingbirds achieved their diverse and fascinating lifestyles through adaptation of their flight, feathers and bone; Credit: © Lance Grande of the Field Museum of Natural History

The Green River Formation of Wyoming recently disclosed a tiny new bird fossil that's really inspiring. The early Eocene is a great age for mammals and birds. In the Caenozoic, the earliest birds diverged from their ancestors with wing shapes adapting to the animals' diverse niches. Their bony remains are not enough for such shape determination, so finding feathers was essential.

The tree-swifts, swifts and hummingbirds are the only living groups of a large assembly of Apodidae with the well-known flight habits of these birds. The chimney swift, Chaetum pelagicus, looks similar to the fossil but this ancestor had none of the modern swift's well known abilities in flight.

Eocypselus rowei was a complete fossil with a poorly preserved skull. The short round beak is its most obvious feature. What separates the species from modern relatives is its long digits and legs, which are adapted for something rarely achieved by swifts- perching on a branch! The Apodids, especially the swifts, are by definition, almost legless! They even sleep on the wing.

By comparison, the humerus of this bird resembles swifts, although the less elongated wing shape is very different from the swift. Early hummingbirds had short stout wings, obviously a little later than this early specimen of the group.

Daniel T. Ksepka of North Carolina State University in Raleigh and several colleagues in US universities and Lance Grande of the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago published their paper, "Fossil evidence of wing shape in a stem relative of swifts and hummingbirds," in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.


Trending Eco-Friendly Clothing

Love My Planet Women's Relaxed Fit Hoodie
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Love My Planet Women's Relaxed Fit Hoodie
Love My Planet women's eco-friendly relaxed fit hoodieSize Guide Centimeters 8 10 12 14 16 18 Bust 84 88 92 97 103 108 Waist 66 70 75 80 85 91 Hips 91 95 99 104 109 116 Bust: Measure around the fullest part of...
£38.00
£38.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Penguins Hate Push-Ups Men's Pullover Hoodie
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Penguins Hate Push-Ups Men's Pullover Hoodie
Penguins Hate Push-Ups men's eco-friendly pullover HoodieSize Guide Centimeters XS S M L XL XXL Height 171 175 179 183 189 195 Chest 86 93 99 104 116 129 Waist 71 76 81 89 99 112 Chest: Measure all round your chest just below...
£38.00
£38.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Lightning Bolt Kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Notify me
Lightning Bolt Kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Lightning Bolt kids eco-friendly long sleeve t-shirtSize Guide Centimeters 3-4yrs 5-6yrs 7-8yrs 9-10yrs 11-12yrs Height 98 112 125 136 147 Chest 60 66 70 75 84 Chest: Measure all around your chest just below your armpits. Height: Your natural height If you fall between...
£18.00
£18.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Notify me
Union Jack Tote Bag
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Union Jack Tote Bag
Union Jack eco-friendly colour tote bagProduct Specification Organic Cotton Tote Bag. Twill Weave (170gsm). 37 x 42 cm (7cm gusset.) Made in India / Designed on the Isle of Wight. Wash Cool, Hang Dry.
£16.00
£16.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Prev Post
Next Post

Eco-Friendly Shop

Women's Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothing for Women Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable women’s clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies, vests, sweaters, shorts, and...
Shop Now

Men's Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothing for Men Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable men’s clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies, vests, sweaters, shorts, and...
Shop Now

Kids Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothes for Kids Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable kids clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies and jumpers. Our garments...
Shop Now
Someone recently bought a
[time] ago, from [location]

Thanks for subscribing!

This email has been registered!

Shop the look

Choose Options

Earth Times
Sign up for exclusive updates, new arrivals & insider only discounts

Recently Viewed

Edit Option
Back In Stock Notification
this is just a warning
Login
Shopping Cart
0 items

Before you leave...

Take 20% off your first order

20% off

Enter the code below at checkout to get 20% off your first order

CODESALE20

Continue Shopping