Archaeopteryx Skull Replica

$65.00

Archaeopteryx lived in the late Jurassic Period around 150 – 145 million years ago. Despite its small size, broad wings, and inferred ability to fly or glide, Archaeopteryx has more in common with small theropod dinosaurs than it does with modern birds.

Description

Archaeopteryx Skull Replica measures 2.0 inches or 5.2cm. Archaeopteryx Skull Replica is museum quality polyurethane cast. 2-part skull (separate cranium & jaw). 1:1 Scale, Made in USA. Archaeopteryx lithographica is the scientific name. Our precise Archaeopteryx skull fossil can be used as a teaching tool, museum skull exhibit, home décor skull, or office décor skull.

Archaeopteryx lithographica meaning old wing, sometimes referred to by its German name, Urvogel, is a genus of bird like dinosaurs. Between the late 19th century and the early 21st century, Archaeopteryx was generally accepted by palaeontologists and popular reference books as the oldest known bird.

Archaeopteryx lithographica lived in the Late Jurassic around 150 million years ago, in what is now southern Germany, and also Portugal, during a time when Europe was an archipelago of islands in a shallow warm tropical sea, much closer to the equator than it is now.

Similar in size to a Eurasian magpie, with the largest individuals possibly attaining the size of a raven, the largest species of Archaeopteryx lithographica could grow to about 1 ft. 8 in. in length. Despite their small size, broad wings, and inferred ability to fly or glide,

Archaeopteryx lithographica had more in common with other small Mesozoic dinosaurs than with modern birds. In particular, they shared the following features with the dromaeosaurids and troodontids: jaws with sharp teeth, three fingers with claws, a long bony tail, hyperextensible second toes (“killing claw”), feathers (which also suggest warm-bloodedness), and various features of the Archaeopteryx lithographica skeleton.

These features make Archaeopteryx lithographica a clear candidate for a transitional fossil between non-avian dinosaurs and birds. Archaeopteryx plays an important role, not only in the study of the origin of birds, but in the study of dinosaurs.

Archaeopteryx lithographica was named from a single feather in 1861, the identity of which has been controversial. That same year, the first complete specimen of Archaeopteryx lithographica was announced.

Over the years, ten more fossils of Archaeopteryx lithographica have surfaced. Despite variation among these Archaeopteryx lithographica fossils, most experts regard all the remains that have been discovered as belonging to a single species.

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Additional information

Weight 1.2 lbs
Dimensions 2 in
Archaeopteryx lithographica Facts

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Clade: Avialae
Family: †Archaeopterygidae
Genus: †Archaeopteryx
Type species: †Archaeopteryx lithographica
Conservation Status: Extinct