120-Million-Year-Old Fossilized Bird Tracks in Australia the Oldest Ever Discovered in Southern Polar Region

The earliest bird footprints in the southern polar regions were found in Australia. The findings suggest that those birds once lived on the supercontinent Gondwana.

Earliest Bird Tracks in Australia

Bird traces discovered in Victoria, Australia's Wonthaggi Formation date to the Early Cretaceous period (145 million to 100.5 million years ago), approximately 120 million years ago. In the new study, researchers detail 27 different-sized and shaped bird footprints that provide evidence of various extinct bird species in the area, including some of the largest known Cretaceous birds.

Before these discoveries, There were only sparse bone remains, feathers, and two tracks representing Early Cretaceous birds in Australia. Australia was located closer to the South Pole and further south on Gondwana.

There are various reasons why these bird footprints are significant to science. The fact that they are the oldest birds in Australia indicates that they have been there for at least 120 million years. However, according to research co-author Anthony Martin, a paleontologist at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, they're also the oldest bird traces in the Southern Hemisphere, encompassing a much more significant portion of the Cretaceous planet. These recordings date back to when this region of Australia was near the South Pole and still part of Antarctica. They are, therefore, the earliest bird footprints found in once-arctic areas.

According to researchers, the traces shed light on how early birds spread throughout different biomes and landmasses. Southern regions have incredibly scarce Cretaceous bird fossils compared to the northern continents, where many early bird fossils have been discovered.

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Birds Are Dinosaur Offsprings

According to Riley Black, author of "The Last Days of the Dinosaurs," birds are related to dinosaurs. Some don't even believe dinosaurs are extinct because birds are their offspring.

Archaeopteryx, the earliest bird known to exist from the fossil record, was a Jurassic period bird. It was quickly determined to be the earliest bird and became the center of the evolution of birds. For an extended period, the origins and ancestry of birds were poorly understood. It is now well known that birds were just a branch of the dinosaur phylogeny.

About 150 million years ago, the first petrified bird remains were discovered. These prehistoric birds had several characteristics and a slight resemblance in appearance to small, feathered dinosaurs. They still had sharp fangs in their mouths. However, as time passed, birds lost their teeth and acquired beaks.

The over 140 million-year-old dinosaur era ended abruptly when a massive asteroid strike and massive volcanic eruptions fundamentally changed the ecology. Most dinosaurs went extinct. Now, there were just birds.

Birds have continuously evolved, enabling them to endure their changing environment. At present, there are already 11,000 different bird species. They survived the catastrophe despite their strong resemblance to dinosaurs because birds are smaller in size, can eat various food, and can fly.