The huge tail of a feathered dinosaur helped it mate, but made life very difficult

Researchers have studied the fossilized remains of a bird that is more than 120 million years old. Archaeologists found a sample on

 northeast China.The ancient bird was small in size, but was very long—one and a half times its total body size. The individual was named Yuanchuavis kompsosoura in honor of the Chinese mythical dragon Yuanchu, translated from the Greek kompsos, meaning elegant, and oura meaning tail. The fossil dates back to the Mesozoic era.

Scientists were most interested in the bird's tail.Researchers found several unusual characteristics about it - its size, a fan of short feathers at the base and two long feathers with a hard shaft. Today this tail structure  Only a small number of species remain, among them the bird of paradise or quetzal. Individuals use this tail to attract the attention of the opposite sex. 

(Wang et al., Current Biology, 2021).

The new species belonged to the Mesozoic speciesEnantiornis. This is a genus of birds of prey from the subclass of enantiornhis birds, something between non-avian dinosaurs and the ancestors of modern birds. Despite the fact that due to this appearance, males were more often attacked by predators, they were more attracted to females. Thus, the brighter and longer the tail, the more dangerous and shorter its life, but also the more interest the male aroused in the opposite sex, allowing him to mate more often and more actively.

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