Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 1994 Mar 29;91(7):2621-4.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.91.7.2621.

Molecular evidence for the origin of birds

S B Hedges  1
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Molecular evidence for the origin of birds

S B Hedges. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .

Abstract

The major groups of amniote vertebrates appeared during a relatively short time span at the end of the Paleozoic Era, a fact that has caused difficulty in estimating their relationships. The fossil record suggests that crocodilians are the closest living relatives of birds. However, morphological characters and molecular sequence data from living amniotes have repeatedly challenged this hypothesis by indicating a bird-mammal relationship. DNA sequences from four slow-evolving genes (mitochondrial 12S and 16S rRNA, tRNAVal, and nuclear alpha-enolase) now provide strong statistical support for a bird-crocodilian relationship.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1980 Aug 21;624(2):397-408 - PubMed
    1. Mol Biol Evol. 1993 May;10(3):512-26 - PubMed
    1. Nature. 1981 Apr 9;290(5806):457-65 - PubMed
    1. Nature. 1981 Jun 25;291(5817):682-4 - PubMed
    1. Science. 1985 May 24;228(4702):953-8 - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources