A robot created to explore the secrets of dinosaur feathers

In one study, South Korean researchers designed a feathered robotic dinosaur called Robopteryx that mimicked dinosaurs Caudipteryx For monitoring purposes. the goal? Understand the behavior of potential prey and learn more about the role of feathers in this type of animal.

Useful feathers during hunting trips

Not long ago, we mentioned the top ten dinosaur discoveries of 2023. However, 2024 appears to be off to a great start with other research, including one that has been the subject of a journal publication. Scientific reports On January 25th. In fact, a team of researchers from Seoul National University (South Korea) has manufactured and animated the Robopteryx robot, a life-sized replica of the robot. Caudipteryx. This is kind of Feathered and small dinosaur Flightless creatures that lived during the Lower Cretaceous period, about 125 million years ago.

This was the goal of the study leaders Better understanding of the benefits of feathers In this dinosaur. And so on, Caudipteryx It was shown to potential prey, grasshoppers, whose neural responses were measured. However, when the robot flapped its wings, At least 93% are grasshoppers They were fleeing. However, testing on the same robot without its wings observed a leakage rate of only 50%.

The dinosaur that caused panic among its prey

Scientists believe that they have confirmed the hypothesis that this is the case Caudipteryx (And perhaps other feathered dinosaurs) used this feature to create panic among their prey and took advantage of this moment of extreme confusion to capture some of them. Hence question A Fishing technique is like anything else The same may be true of all animals now equipped with feathers, but unable to fly.

Since the first fossils were discovered in China in 1998, Caudipteryx It is of interest to science, mainly because of the distribution of its plumage At the level of its wings and the tip of its tail. In fact, this atypical shape has sparked controversy over the classification of this animal, which appears to fall between bird and non-bird dinosaurs.

Finally, let us emphasize that scientists have attributed other uses to the feathers of this dinosaur. In fact, there's a strong possibility that feathers played a role An important role in egg incubation Or even in stabilizing the body during races.