Birds and dinosaurs lived together for millions of years, but only toothless birds survived the asteroid impact that upended life on Earth.
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But when an asteroid struck Earth 66 million years ago off the coast of what is now Mexico, dinosaurs went extinct – but some birds remained. You might wonder why. Ichthyornis dispar was a primitive seabird with teeth that lived during the late Cretaceous Period – from 100 million to 66 million years ago – in North America. Courtesy of Michael Hanson and Bhart-Anjan S. Bhullar.
When the asteroid struck Earth, it immediately caused massive tsunamis and earthquakes. A giant pulse of heat from the impact caused enormous wildfires near where the asteroid hit. In the months that followed, huge amounts of dust filled the layer of air that surrounds Earth. It blocked the sun, making less light available for plants to grow.
How science worksOf course, it’s possible other factors caused toothless birds to survive while their toothy cousins perished – including luck.
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