Archaeopteryx, a magpie sized animal, is known from the early 1860’s when first a fossilised feather and then a headless specimen were found in Bavaria, Southeast Germany. The limestone rock the creatures have been found in are fine grained and preserve the imprints of feathers. However, there has not been enough detail to answer the question are the feathers strong enough to allow flight? Various different theories have been suggested that Archaeopteryx only lived on the ground, that it used its wings to flap up trees, or that it was capable of full flight.
Photo by Ghedoghedo of Archaeopteryx fossil.
It now seems that a new specimen has been found, again in Bavaria, and this time the level of preservation is so good that the question can now be answered. The fossil shows that the creature was fully covered in feathers, apart from its lower legs which were bare. This would give it the appearance of wearing “trousers” like an eagle does today. Research also shows that the feathers were as strong as feathers on modern birds so there is every reason to think that Archaeopteryx could fly and the name Archaeopteryx, or Urvogel in German, meaning original bird is still a good description of this creature.
