Beaks may have been what allowed the ancestors of birds to survive the mass extinction which wiped out the dinosaurs, according to new research. Some 66 million years ago, a giant asteroid smashed into the earth in what is now Mexico killing 75 per cent of animal species.
Scientists have long wondered why some survived and a study of teeth has given them a plausible reason. They collected over 3,000 dinosaur teeth from Canada’s Royal Tyrrell Museum, the Royal Ontario Museum, the University of Alberta and other institutions.
Close examination led them to the conclusion that small bird-like dinosaurs with teeth at animals which became scarce, while those with beaks were able to crack open nuts and seeds which would have survived for some time after the massive explosion.
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