Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

Palaeontology

Dinosaurs take to the air

A Correction to this article was published on 06 February 2003

Flying birds evolved from a group of bipedal dinosaurs. The latest fossil discoveries from China indicate that the dinosaurian ancestors of birds had four wings — and that these animals glided rather than flapped.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: The origin of birds within the theropod dinosaurs.

References

  1. Sereno, P. Science 284, 2137–2147 (1999).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Prum, R. O. & Brush, A. H. Q. Rev. Biol. 77, 261–295 (2002).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Xu, X. et al. Nature 421, 335–340 (2003).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Padian, K. & Chiappe, L. M. Biol. Rev. 73, 1–42 (1998).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Rayner, J. M. V. in The Beginnings of Birds (eds Hecht, M. K., Ostrom, J. H., Viohl, G. & Wellnhofer, P.) 279–287 (Freunde des Jura-Museum, Eichstätt, 1985).

    Google Scholar 

  6. Burgers, P. & Chiappe, L. M. Nature 399, 60–62 (1999).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Beebe, W. H. Zoologica 2, 38–52 (1915).

    Google Scholar 

  8. Norell, M. et al. Nature 416, 36–37 (2002).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Ji, Q., Currie, P. J., Norell, M. A. & Ji, S.-A Nature 393, 753–761 (1998).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  10. Padian, K. Nature 393, 729–730 (1998).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Richard O. Prum.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Prum, R. Dinosaurs take to the air. Nature 421, 323–324 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/421323a

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/421323a

This article is cited by

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing