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Bird brains predate birds themselves (Image 3)
This computed tomographic (CT) scan shows a modern woodpecker (Melanerpes aurifrons) with its brain cast rendered opaque and the skull transparent.
New research from the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) provides evidence that dinosaurs evolved the brainpower necessary for flight well before they actually took to the air as birds. Based on high-resolution X-ray CT scans, the study takes a comprehensive look at the so-called "bird brain." Contrary to the cliché, the term describes a relatively enlarged brain that has the capacity required for flight and was present in one of the earliest known birds, Archaeopteryx.
The researchers used CT scanners at the University of Texas, Ohio University, Stony Brook University and the museum to peer inside the brain cases of more than two dozen specimens, including modern birds, Archaeopteryx and closely related non-avian dinosaurs like tyrannosaurs. By stitching together the CT scans, the scientists created 3-D reconstructions of the skulls' interiors. In addition to calculating the total volume of each digital brain cast, the research team also determined the size of each brain's major anatomical regions, including the olfactory bulbs, cerebrum, optic lobes, cerebellum and brain stem.
The scientists revealed that at least a few non-avian dinosaurs had brains that were as large or larger than that of Archaeopteryx, indicating that some dinosaurs already suspected of possessing flight capability would have had the neurological hardwiring necessary for this behavior.
Funding for this work was provided in part by a National Science Foundation (NSF) Doctoral Dissertation and Improvement Grant (DEB 09-09970), by NSF's Division of Information and Intelligent Systems (grant IIS 02-08675), and by NSF's Division of Earth Sciences (grant EAR 09-48842).
To learn more, see the NSF News From the Field story Bird brains predate birds themselves. (Date image taken: 2013; date originally posted to NSF Multimedia Gallery: Nov. 10, 2015) [Image 3 of 3 related images. Back to Image 1.]
Credit: ©AMNH/A. Balanoff
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