Paleontologists in Argentina recently found the first unambiguous evidence that a group of theropod dinosaurs had hollow bones capable of holding air sacs – an ability that helps birds fly, according to a study published in PLOS One.
The discovery adds to a growing body of research that has revealed that all theropods and sauropods may have had bones with air sacs.
“This is one feature that they inherited [from a common ancestor],” says Guillermo Windholz, a paleontologist at Argentina’s National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) and the National University of Rio Negro. “This is the reason why actual birds fly — it’s a really crazy feature.”
