A newly studied Vegavis iaai skull from Antarctica confirms that modern bird lineages, like ducks and geese, were evolving ...

A recent study found a nearly complete skull in Antarctica that may belong to an ancient ancestor of ducks and geese called Vegavis iaai. This species lived around 68 million years ago ...

Its features don't slot neatly into any modern bird family. Vegavis iaai had the flat feet of ducks but a sharp, narrow beak like a loon. Thick muscles supported its jaw against water pressure ...

Even with this new fossil evidence, paleontologists are divided over what kind of bird Vegavis really was. Early studies suggested that it was a distant ancestor of ducks and geese, but the new ...

Near the end of the age of dinosaurs, a bird resembling today’s loons and grebes dove for fish and other prey in the perilous ...

A recent study published in the scientific journal “Nature” sheds light on how one particular skull from this era, that of the duck-like Vegavis iaai, may answer a longstanding question about modern ...

The classification of Vegavis has been a hot topic since its initial discovery 20 years ago. Previously identified as an early member of the ducks, geese and swans, some researchers questioned whether ...

Identified as Vegavis iaai, the specimen is closely related to modern ducks and geese, with skull features supporting its classification as a waterfowl. Researchers suggest that its advanced ...