A new theory is getting more and more scientific consensus: Dinosaurs didn’t all go extinct 65 millions years ago. In fact, dinosaurs are all around us. They are birds now. This isn’t a new idea. It was first proposed in the 19th century by English biologist Thomas Huxley, but was promptly ignored. However, the scientific consensus has now turned toward this idea. According to this idea, Theropoda characterized by hollow bones and three-toed limb, some covered with leather and probably could fly are believed to be the ancestors of modern birds. A colorful new exhibit which opened in 2016 at the American Museum of Natural History in New York-entitled “Dinosaurs Among Us”-birds are the direct descendants of theropod dinosaurs. This is Archaeopteryx, discovered in 1861, and though it's a dinosaur, it resembles a bird. Citipati osmolskae fossils were discovered by scientists in 1993 in Mongolia, and they resembled modern ostriches. Yutyrannus huali, which means “ beautiful feathered tyrant,” is a relative of T. rex and was covered in a coat of "proto-feathers." It was discovered in northeastern China in 2012. According to scientists, many Theropods laid eggs in nests, and even sat atop them, brooding like modern birds. Juvenile birds use their underdeveloped wings, which in some cases look very similar to the forearms of their dinosaur ancestors. Both groups had air-filled pockets in their bones that made them lightweight. And each group likewise possess wishbones, bony structures in the chest. Then there are the feathers, useful for providing shade and cooling, also providing insulation, and likely for use as ornamentation during mating (like modern-day peacocks). So how did ancestors of modern birds survive the disaster leading to the mass extinction that disappeared large dinosaurs and marine reptiles? The answer is probably that they had a very high metabolism and that they grew quickly and reached adulthood in less than a year. The high metabolism and rapid growth are believed to help them overcome the difficulties of living in a hostile climate resulted from the “nuclear winter” that put an end to the Dinosaur Age. If this theory is correct, then with about 13,000 species of birds-2.5 times the number of known mammal species, one could argue that we still live in the age of dinosaurs.
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