In Brazil, a fossil remains were discovered, dating back approximately 80 million years, providing new data on the evolution of birds in the animal kingdom and connections between them and primitive dinosaurs from the group of archaeopterygids. This information was published by the journal "Nature."
The fossil remains, named "Navornis histiae," represent a small skull, no longer than three centimeters, including a well-preserved beak. It was discovered in 2016 at a small quarry in the state of São Paulo in Brazil, where fossils are found in a layer about 50 centimeters thick.
The discovery of "Navornis" allows for a conclusion that it is linked between primitive dinosaur archaeopterygids, existing 150 million years ago, and modern birds which appeared about 75 million years ago. Thanks to the good condition of the small skull, it was possible to restore its geometric shape, revealingresemblances with modern birds, including, for example, wrens.
After this, using previous scanning methods, the structure of the fossilized brain was reconstructed, making it a unique case "Rosettes Stone," which provides better understanding of the evolution of bird brains.
