Although dinosaurs have perished long ago, many scientists have deep curiosity to know about them. Therefore, they often do many studies. However, lately, a group of scientists attached fake tails at the back of chickens to study how dinosaurs might have moved.
A group of scientists from the University of Chile and the University of Illinois at Chicago published a paper, titled, “Walking Like Dinosaurs: Chickens with Artificial Tails Provide Clues about Non-Avian Theropod Locomotion” in the online journal, PLOS ONE . In that paper, they mentioned with details – how test chickens were outfitted with fake tails, how their movements were observed to learn more about the way dinosaurs went for a stroll.
The scientists observed normal interactions between the chickens with extra tails and control-group chickens with no added body parts. Scientists found that there was “no ill effects or distress.” In fact, after attaching the fake tail yo their body, the chickens behaved totally “normal.”
According to the scientists, “Here we show that, by experimentally manipulating the location of the center of mass in living birds, it is possible to re-create limb posture and kinematics inferred for extinct bipedal dinosaurs.” Scientists have concluded that working with modern birds will lead them to “a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between form and function in dinosaur evolution.”
Here’s a video of a standard chicken walking compared with a tail-wearing chicken.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdYQXLKA1UY
Source: Plos One
Thanks To: CNET
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