Bird Brain?

The article looks at research on Archaeopteryx which is considered the world's oldest known bird. A detailed X-ray scan of the fossilized braincase of an Archaeopteryx shows that several features of the ancient feathered creature's brain and inner ear were highly developed and similar to those of modern birds. Timothy B. Rowe, a paleontologist at the University of Texas, and his colleagues used a computerized tomography scanner to map the portion of the skull that houses the brain of the Archaeopteryx specimen from the Natural History Museum of London. Examining bulges as well as fine markings on the skull's inner surface, Angela C. Milner, a paleontologist at the museum, and her coworkers reconstructed the overall anatomy of the ancient creature's brain. Archaeopteryx had keen senses of hearing, balance, and spatial perception. Such attributes would be critical for flying. Pterosaurs, a lineage of flying reptiles that ruled the skies between 235 million and 65 million years ago and is unrelated to Archaeopteryx, had similar enhancements of the brain and inner ear. Paleontologists can compare Archaeopteryx's anatomy with that of the reptiles that preceded it and look for patterns of brain and inner ear evolution.