A crucial transitional species between dinosaurs and birds might have possessed peculiar ‘teeth’ on the roof of its mouth and a remarkably agile tongue, a recent investigation suggests
A representation of Archaeopteryx, showcasing the oral papillae on the palate and a highly flexible tongue. (Image credit: Illustration by Ville Sinkkonen.)Subscribe to our newsletter
An intriguing set of previously undiscovered characteristics within the skull of Archaeopteryx, a celebrated dinosaur regarded as a pivotal transitional fossil in avian evolution, has been revealed by researchers, according to a new study.
These features — which are absent in non-flying dinosaurs but prevalent in extant birds — may have enhanced Archaeopteryx’s capacity for efficiently obtaining, manipulating, and processing sustenance, the research collective posited in the study, which was published on February 2nd in the journal The Innovation.
Among the recently identified traits is a minute bone suggesting Archaeopteryx possessed a highly agile tongue. The investigators also detected “unusual” soft tissue remnants interpreted as oral papillae — diminutive, tooth-like protuberances on the palate, Jingmai O’Connor, an associate curator of fossil reptiles at the Field Museum in Chicago and the study’s lead author, informed Live Science via email. Lastly, the team found “peculiar” apertures near the jaw’s extremity that imply a nerve-rich structure and might represent an early counterpart to what is recognized as a bill-tip organ in contemporary birds.
The documentation of these features in Archaeopteryx signifies their earliest known appearance in the paleontological record, the study indicates, proposing that these attributes emerged during or near the advent of avian dinosaurs — referred to as birds — which is believed to have occurred in the Late Jurassic epoch (approximately 161.5 million to 143 million years ago).
The fully prepared fossil slab of the Field Museum’s Archaeopteryx specimen. (Image credit: (c) Field Museum)
Modern avian species are the sole dinosaur lineage to survive the mass extinction event 66 million years ago. Archaeopteryx, which existed approximately 150 million years ago in what is now Germany, is among the most ancient — if not the very first — known dinosaur that can be classified as a bird under a broad classification, though it was likely not the initial bird to evolve, O’Connor stated.
Moreover, Archaeopteryx is improbable to have been a direct progenitor of contemporary birds, according to research findings. O’Connor suggests that Archaeopteryx represents the earliest documented dinosaur exhibiting substantial evidence of active, feather-powered flight, albeit likely restricted to brief, propulsive bursts.
A magnified view of the Archaeopteryx’s skull under ultraviolet illumination, revealing soft tissue details. (Image credit: Photographer Delaney Drummond, (c) Field Museum)
The recently unveiled characteristics emerged during the preparation and scrutiny of an Archaeopteryx specimen at the Field Museum, which was initially described scientifically in 2025.
Oral papillae aid birds in securing prey and directing food towards their gullets. This marks the first instance of such features being documented in the fossil record, the study highlighted. The adaptable tongue, meanwhile, likely assisted Archaeopteryx in reaching for and manipulating food items. Bill-tip organs in birds offer “additional sensory input” that facilitates various oral functions, such as foraging for sustenance, O’Connor noted.
The latest discoveries concerning Archaeopteryx, indicating a modification in dinosaur feeding capabilities around the inception of birds, present the “intriguing possibility” that the development of these novel attributes was spurred by the heightened energetic requirements linked to the emergence of powered, feather-driven flight, the authors propose.
Christian Foth, a paleontologist associated with the Museum für Naturkunde (Natural History Museum) in Berlin, who was not involved in the study, conveyed to Live Science via email that the publication contains some “intriguing revelations” that warrant further investigation in additional Archaeopteryx, early-avian, and bird-like-dinosaur specimens. However, he expressed skepticism regarding the authors’ hypothesis for a new bill-tip organ analogue within the snout and advised caution concerning the assertion that these features evolved as adaptations for Archaeopteryx’s aerial locomotion.
“Active flight necessitates energy, certainly. But the ultimate quantity of calories an organism could utilize for flight is more contingent upon the dietary source itself and the digestive system, for which we have no information,” Foth stated. These adaptations might “ensure that a captured dragonfly did not escape the mouth,” he added, “but not indicate the efficacy of food processing.”