"Chickens = distant cousins of T-Rex" - Picture a coop to house a TREX

[Nifty-Chicken]

Just saw this on cnn.com:

"Tiny bits of protein extracted from a 68-million-year-old dinosaur bone have given scientists the first genetic proof that the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex is a distant cousin to the modern chicken."

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/04/12/dinosaur.reut/index.html?eref=rss_topstories


Maybe I need to open up BackYardDinosaurs.com !

 

[SpottedCrow]

Isn't that just neat!!

 

[bayouchica]

That's soo cool !!! They do look like mini dinosaurs.

I'm trying to picture a 10 foot chicken running around !! Kinda scary !

Miriam

 

[justusnak]

mini T REX??? OH MY!! I want to have a miniature farm......being we only have 5 acres....so miniature farm animals...WOOHOO! I have miniature T REX cousins!!

 

[MTchick]

No wonder the T-Rex they studied was from Eastern Montana. Big Sky Country = Really Big Coop Country...

-MTchick

 

[ivan3]

`We're gonna need a bigger nestbox...'

We collect silicified Lycophytes from the stream beds around here. The mineralized remains of 320 million year old tree ferns that once stood in `coal swamps’ that covered this region. On occasion the roo will hop on our big root section while I’m sitting on it. It is interesting to reflect on the fact that our common ancestor (some lowly tetrapod) might well have caught some shade under the fronds of this very `tree’, on some long ago afternoon. Following which the roo got the beak, we got the hair and T.Rex got museum quality track lighting...

Well, if you want to ponder the phylogenetics of it all, or just peruse a very nice gallery of Galliformes, check this site (click on Galliformes images). Pay particular attention to Dendragapus obscurus on page 3 (T. Rex would be proud).

http://www.googlesyndicatedsearch.com/u/TreeofLife?q=galliformes

 

[Carole AM]

Oh WOW! very cool article! I printed it, and will share!
I always said our chickens are like little Velociraptors- the way they eat! When we saw the compys on Jurassic Park, we said, "Look at the little chickens!"

 

[Hotwings]

I saw some baby poults at the feedstore that looked just like little t rexes and they had their attitude too!

 

[CarriBrown]

Quote:

My husband and I say the same thing!!! Like the way they stare something down with one eye....

 

[soonerdog]

How interesting! I am glad as they evolved, or de-evolved, they got smaller and lost all their teeth!!!!!! They make good pets these days!