New species of ‘missing link’ between dinosaurs and birds identified

             Dr. John Nudds, from the University's School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, and the team have been re-examining one of the only 12 known specimens by carrying out the first ever synchrotron examination, a form of 3D X-ray analysis, of an Archaeopteryx. 
The team says that this individual Archaeopteryx fossil, known as 'specimen number eight', is physically much closer to a modern bird than it is to a reptile. Therefore, it is evolutionary distinctive and different enough to be described as a new species -Archaeopteryx albersdoerferi.
             Archaeopteryx was first described as the 'missing link' between reptiles and birds in 1861 and is now regarded as the link between dinosaurs and birds. Only 12 specimens have ever been found and all are from the late Jurassic of Bavaria, now Germany, dating back approximately 150 million years.
            Lead author, Dr. Martin Kundrát, from the University of Pavol Jozef Šafárik, Slovakia, said: "This is the first time that numerous bones and teeth of Archaeopteryx were viewed from all aspects including exposure of their inner structure. The use of synchrotron microtomography was the only way to study the specimen as it is heavily compressed with many fragmented bones partly or completely hidden in limestone."