Mummified Prehistoric Bird Head Discovered in Mexican Cave

Published 18 February 2018

Researchers say the bird was unearthed in the Avendanos Cave in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico.

The mummified head of a prehistoric bird was found back in 2016, the National Institute of Anthropology and History in Mexico has revealed.

Researchers say the bird was unearthed in the Avendanos Cave in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico. The scientists believe they have identified the head of one of the oldest macaw mummies ever discovered.

"The first [thing] we noticed was the head of the macaw in perfect condition," Archaeologist Emiliano Gallaga told The National Geographic.

The green color of the military macaw's plume is visible and its beak is intact. The researchers determined that the bird dates back to about 2,000 years to 900 AD – 800 years older than any other specimen from that region.

The scientist disclosed that military macaws were not native to the region of the Central American country and as a result were likely brought there for religious purposes.

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3D-printed titanium beak gives Brazilian macaw Gigi chance to crunch food for first time

A macaw with a deformed beak has been rescued from captivity and given a new 3D titanium prosthesis during delicate surgery in Brazil.

Life with a shorter-than-normal beak meant the bird could not eat solid foods properly.

PHOTO: Gigi before and after the titanium 

beak surgery.(Supplied: Facebook)

The macaw, named Gigi, was operated on at the CETAS Unimonte animal research, training and rehabilitation centre in San Paulo by a team of four veterinarians.

The new beak was designed by professor and 3D designer Cícero Moraes who shared photos of the process on his personal Facebook page.

He dubbed the surgery an "historic moment", saying it was the first time a macaw had received a prosthetic 3D-printed beak.

The centre alluded in a Facebook post to the fact Gigi was rescued because she was involved in the illegal exotic birds trade.

The research centre's veterinarians released photos and videos of Gigi living life with her new beak after the successful surgery.

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Save the Parrots: Macaw Genome Sequenced

May 8, 2013 — In a groundbreaking move that provides new insight into avian evolution, biology and conservation, researchers at Texas A&M University have successfully sequenced the complete genome of a Scarlet macaw for the first time.

The team was led by Drs. Christopher Seabury and Ian Tizard at the Schubot Exotic Bird Health Center in the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences at Texas A&M. Their work is published in the current issue of the open access and peer-reviewed scientific journal PLOS ONE.

The bird selected for the sequencing was a female named "Neblina" who lives in the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines, Iowa. Neblina is believed to be from Brazil. She was confiscated during a raid on illegally imported exotic birds by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995.

Tizard says that a blood sample was taken from Neblina, DNA was extracted for sequencing, and after a series of steps, the sequence of the genome was assembled by Seabury and his team.

"The final analysis showed that there are about one billion DNA bases in the genome, which is about one-third of that found in mammals," Tizard explains. "Birds have much less DNA than mammals primarily because they do not possess nearly as much repetitive DNA."

The final completed genome demonstrates some similarities to that of the chicken. "But there are significant differences at both the genome and biological level," he adds. For example, "Macaws can fly great distances, while chickens can't. In addition, brain development and volume are very different in macaws, which is unsurprising since they are very intelligent birds compared to chickens. Likewise, macaws can live many years, while chickens usually do not, and therefore, our macaw genome sequence may help shed light on the genetic factors that influence longevity and intelligence."

Tizard notes that a Scarlet macaw was selected for the first such sequencing of its type because Texas A&M researchers have been studying the bird for many years. Working primarily at the Tambopata Research Center in Peru, Texas A&M bird experts have been investigating macaw diseases, behavior and genetics.

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