From Dinosaurs to Birds

Dinosaurs are still among us....

Like many children I was fascinated by dinosaurs from an early age. My favourites were Stegasaurus and Triceratops, which I probably imagine feeding together on the ancient plains. I was astonished years later to find that Stegasaurus went extinct millions of years before Triceratops even appeared!

My interest in dinosaurs was reawakened when, years ago now, I took two weeks off from my regular job to work on the Dinosaur Dig activity at the Edinburgh International Science Festival. It was great fun but very hard work and certainly not a holiday!

Recently, I’ve read two excellent books about dinosaurs. Dino Gangs: Dr Philip J Currie's New Science of Dinosaurs by Josh Young, a book accompanying the Dino Gangs TV series and possibly aimed at Young Adults, looks at science that explores the social life of dinosaurs while The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs by Steve Brusatte outlines the history of dinosaurs from the earliest small examples to current day birds with a bit of a focus on Tyrannosaurus Rex. I’ve reviewed both these books on my regular blog here.

It’s important to understand the history of life on earth and I think it’s great that youngsters are so fascinated by extinct dinosaurs. However, it’s even more important to be engaged by the living world we see around us today, including the modern day dinosaurs we know as birds.

I’ve been interested in birds for as long as I’ve been interested in their extinct ancestors. Birds are present in most habitats, including cities, and are often brightly coloured and many of them sing beautiful songs. So they offer an easy way for people to start getting interested in nature.

Notes on Modern Day Dinosaurs

At the weekend we walked along Edinburgh’s Water of Leith and saw a gathering of Mallards and Goosanders. We didn’t take photos at the time, partly because we were so interested in watching all the interactions between the birds! Here’s a photo of a male Goosander taken a few years back.

Worth Watching

Small Blue - the film. This beautifully made and interesting film highlights the incredible work being done for the Small Blue Butterfly along Scotland’s north coast. The fact that this species is very rare probably explains that the butterfly itself barely appears on screen.