The discovery of a new winged dinosaur advances scientific understanding.

Written By Radhika Vaishnav
Researchers have discovered a new 30 cm long dinosaur that they have named Ambopteryx Longibrachium. It lived 163 million years ago (Jurassic Age) in northeastern China and had bat-like wings. Ambopteryx did not fly, but rather moved from tree to tree using gliding movements.
 According to the paleontologists, two small dinosaurs, Yi qi (discovered in 2015) and Ambopteryx Longibrachium, were both incapable of flying long distances, and could manage to get from one tree to another in the area that they lived in. The research team was made up of scientists from various countries who reported their findings in the journal iScience. The team used a technique called Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence (LSF), that allowed them to scan fossils and visualize the soft (non-bony) tissue. 
This technique has been used by paleontologists for the past few years and has helped them to further understand the anatomy of dinosaurs. Based on what they observed in terms of the wing anatomy and size, they were able to use mathematical modeling to predict the mode of flight in these prehistoric animals. They believe that these winged dinosaurs were ill-adapted to survive predators for very long and this may have resulted in their extinction. They also comment that this discovery shows that there were many types of winged dinosaurs and not all evolved into birds. 
Paleontology remains a niche area of research which has limited sophisticated tools, so advances in technology allow for major advances in the field to be made. The use of the laser based technique has enabled scientists to visualize tissues such as muscle, skin and organs, that might be present in the fossil but invisible to the naked eye. 
This has advanced the understanding of various types of prehistoric birds and bird-like dinosaurs. For example, with winged dinosaurs, the presence of Patagium can be visualized using this technique. Patagium is the tissue that connects the upper to the lower limb and suggests possibility of flight or gliding. This combined with advanced computational techniques have brought new information to light in this long-standing field. The recent developments suggest that there may have been many ingenious ways of flying and gliding amongst dinosaurs and that not all were direct ancestors of birds.

Bibliography 

Bittel, Jason. “How Do You Discover a Dinosaur?” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 24 Apr. 2018, www.theguardian.com/science/2018/apr/24/how-do-you-discover-a-dinosaur. 
Dececchi , Alexander, et al. “Aerodynamics Show Membrane-Winged Theropods Were a Poor Gliding Dead-End.” Cell.com, 22 Oct. 2020, www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(20)30766-5. 
Hone , David. “How Do You Discover a Dinosaur?” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 24 Apr. 2018, www.theguardian.com/science/2018/apr/24/how-do-you-discover-a-dinosaur. 
Lloyd, James. “Tiny, Bat-Winged Dinosaur Sheds Light on the Origin of Flight.” BBC Science Focus Magazine, 14 Apr. 2020, www.sciencefocus.com/news/tiny-bat-winged-dinosaur-sheds-light-on-the-origin-of-flight/. 
McGillU. “Bat-Winged Dinosaurs That Could Glide.” EurekAlert!, 22 Oct. 2022, www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-10/mu-bdt102220.php. 
Radhika Vaishnav

Radhika Vaishnav, Ph.D. is a molecular biologist and certified National Geographic Educator who loves to bring the wonders of nature to her pen and canvas. 

She has published her research in various areas of biology and medicine in scientific journals. Her training as a biologist began with her undergraduate in Zoology, and continued with a Masters’ in Molecular Biology and Ph.D. in Physiology. Her various research projects included learning about genes that make a cell cancerous, understanding lifespan of humans and animals, learning about the sense of smell, understanding how water moves around in and out of cells, learning about how chemicals can damage living cells and studying the fascinating ways in which plants and bacteria can interact with animals.

Radhika developed an interest in nature and writing at a very young age. After 15 years of active teaching and research in academia in biomedical sciences, she began to get more involved in science communication. The need to involve the community in scientific discoveries through outreach and writing, as well as inspire people to be more curious and inquisitive has become her goal for the years ahead. She also has a passion for travel and photography and has visited several countries as well almost all 50 of the United States.

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