Furcula

Chickens /  by Tsering Frykman-Glen

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Building a dinosaur from a chicken by Jack Horner

Articles on chickens (not in any particular order - most recently discovered first)

Here’s what happens when you rewind the clock on chicken domestication - Elizabeth Pennisi, sciencemag.org (2015)

The tamer birds grew faster, laid larger eggs, and were bossier than their more fearful counterparts. "Low-fear [birds] seem to be developing the traits we want in domestication," Larson says.  

Ancestors of chickens studied for conservation - Economic times (2008)

“The ancestors of domestic chickens and poultry are being conserved and studied by scientists in case the domestic birds are eradicated by outbreak of diseases like bird flu.”

The furcula or wishbone - Wikipedia

“The furcula ("little fork" in Latin) or wishbone is a forked bone found in birds and some other species of dinosaurs, and is formed by the fusion of the two clavicles.”

How did the chicken, a shy, flight-impaired forest bird, migrate around the globe? - Hanneke Meijer, The Guardian (2016)
"Chickens are native to the tropical jungles of Southeast Asia, but over the last approximately 8,000 years, chickens have been domesticated and spread around the globe to become one of the most valued domesticated animals."

Furcula /  by Tsering Frykman-Glen

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Articles on furcula (not in any particular order - most recently read first)

ORIGINS OF BREAKING THE WISHBONE: HORSESHOES, GROINS AND CHICKEN OUIJA BOARDS - Madeleine D’Este, folklorethursday.com (2017)

“But the wishbone is not only for making wishes, the furcula is also used to divine the weather. Geese are traditionally eaten on St Martin’s Night (11th November) and the thickness of the wishbone of a goose predicts the severity of the coming winter.”

Why Do We Wish on the Turkey’s Wishbone? - Matt Soniak, Mental Floss  (2017)

”When a chicken was killed, the furcula was laid out in the sun to dry so that it could be preserved and so that people would still have access to the oracle's power even after eating it.”

The fabulous flight-facilitating furcula -  Dr Dave Hone, The Guardian (2016)

“This familiar little bone is shaped somewhere between a U and a V sits in the upper chest of a bird and acts to help support this area of the body under the strains of flight.”

Dinosaurs /  by Tsering Frykman-Glen

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Building a dinosaur from a chicken by Jack Horner

Drawing a chickenosaurus (timelapse)

Articles on dinosaurs (not in any particular order - most recently discovered first)

Large flock of parrot-like dinosaurs uncovered - Jacqui Hayes, Cosmos Online (2006)

“An astonishing 67 dinosaurs were found in just one week in the Gobi desert, which straddles northern China and southern Mongolia, by palaeontologist Jack Horner from Montana State University, USA.”

Why two tiny wings preserved in amber have palaeontologists in a flap - Dr Hanneke Meijer, The Guardian (2016)

”Nicknamed ‘Rose’ and ‘angel wing’, the two specimens show that even in the age of dinosaurs, wings already looked remarkably modern.”