Phytolith evidence reveals the origin of angiosperm leaf eating habits among ancient Cretaceous birds

作者：Yan Wu, Zhiheng Li, Thomas A. Stidham, Swee Yeok Foong · 发表于：The Innovation · 年份：2023 · DOI：10.1016/j.xinn.2023.100500 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology、Evolution and Paleontology Studies、Plant Diversity and Evolution

Recently, Nature Communications published a study on the feeding habits of an ancient extinct bird called Jeholornis from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota of China led by researchers from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.1 Jeholornis and its closely related species are regarded as part of the second most primitive lineage in the family tree of birds, retaining a long bony dinosaurian tail, small teeth, and large claws on the wings. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach, the scientific team discovered hundreds of phytoliths originated from the leaves of the basal angiosperm group called magnoliids (which includes living magnolias, cinnamon, and avocadoes), while investigating the stomach residues contents of a well-preserved 120-million-year-old juvenile Jeholornis fossil.