Join our zoo community

Dinosaur-like birds

Discussion in 'General Zoo Discussion' started by lowland anoa, 18 Jan 2019.

  1. Sarus Crane

    Sarus Crane Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    23 Apr 2017
    Posts:
    1,081
    Location:
    USA
    Like others here the three cassowaries are high on the list but also I've found that the giant storks of the genus Leptoptilos are like the modern day Azhdarchids (giant pterosaurs like Quetzalcoatlus, Hatzegopteryx & Arambourgiania) with their massive size in relation to other storks and waders but also their feeding habits. The Azhdarchids were primarily ground dwellers who fed on smaller dinosaurs and carrion like the giant storks. In addition their massive wingspans enabled them to fly for super long distances to find their next food item (think Boeing 747's of the Cretaceous) and the way they got airborn was by launching themselves up in the air like a bat. For more on them, specifically Quetzalcoatlus watch Flying Monsters with David Attenborough.

    Also, spoonbills have recently made me think of the duck-billed dinosaurs, specifically Edmontosaurus annectens and the Chinese super giant Shantungosaurus giganteus. I really love AMNH's pair of Edmontosaurus (formerly called Trachodon mirabilis when they debuted in 1907) in their Hall of Saurischian Dinosaurs.

    In addition, when I saw Sarus Cranes up close in Miami for the first time I thought "they're like feathered Struthiomimuses with no tails!"
     
    Last edited: 24 Jan 2019
    Birdsage likes this.
  2. Keiikoa

    Keiikoa Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    14 Jul 2018
    Posts:
    20
    Location:
    Sweden
    Hoatzins.
     
  3. Sheather

    Sheather Well-Known Member 10+ year member

    Joined:
    13 May 2013
    Posts:
    256
    Location:
    Chicagoland
    Phylogenetic bracketing suggests struthiomimus was also fully feathered.
     
    Birdsage and Sarus Crane like this.
  4. Sarus Crane

    Sarus Crane Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    23 Apr 2017
    Posts:
    1,081
    Location:
    USA
    So I've already seen them! :)
     
  5. Hipporex

    Hipporex Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    19 Oct 2018
    Posts:
    1,790
    Location:
    California, United States
    [​IMG]

    Terror birds (Phorusrhacidae):
    [​IMG]
    (fyi: this bird wasn't godzilla-sized, rather the horses were teeny tiny)
     
    Last edited: 29 Jan 2019
    Sarus Crane likes this.
  6. Hipporex

    Hipporex Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    19 Oct 2018
    Posts:
    1,790
    Location:
    California, United States
    Also, Azhdarchids, which were totally awesome, were actually pterosaurs, a group of flying reptiles that were not dinosaurs
     
    Sarus Crane likes this.
  7. Sarus Crane

    Sarus Crane Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    23 Apr 2017
    Posts:
    1,081
    Location:
    USA
    And some species were as tall as Giraffes!
     
  8. akasha

    akasha Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    8 Jun 2018
    Posts:
    655
    Location:
    NSW, Australia
    Helmeted Guineafowl have a dino-esque crest.
     
  9. Hipporex

    Hipporex Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    19 Oct 2018
    Posts:
    1,790
    Location:
    California, United States
    Indeed
    [​IMG]
     
    birdsandbats and Sarus Crane like this.
  10. akasha

    akasha Well-Known Member 5+ year member

    Joined:
    8 Jun 2018
    Posts:
    655
    Location:
    NSW, Australia
    In terms of domestic chickens, Australian Game are pretty dino-like.
     
  11. elefante

    elefante Well-Known Member 10+ year member

    Joined:
    12 Aug 2009
    Posts:
    2,148
    Location:
    North Dakota, USA
    Maribou storks look like dinosaurs. I think most baby songbirds do before their feathers come in completely.
     
    Birdsage likes this.