If there is a topic that’s divided many when it comes to the animal kingdom is whether or not birds are actually reptiles. For many, the thought of birds being reptiles, especially going by what they’ve been taught in school, is simply crazy. In fact, some of them actually laugh at the thought of birds being reptiles. But is this so? Are birds really not reptiles or simply put are birds reptiles?
As surprising as it might seem or sound, birds are indeed reptiles. I know I know, this is not what they taught in school but its true birds are classified together with other scaly animals that make up reptiles.
What Exactly Are Birds?
This is a very good question to ask and even answer when looking at whether or not birds are reptiles. So what are birds exactly? they are basically a group of warm-blooded vertebrates. A typical bird usually has the following notable traits;
- Has Feathers
- No Teeth
- Has A High Metabolic Rate
- Lays Hard-Shelled Eggs
- Has A Strong/Lightweight Skeleton
- Has Toothless Beaked Jaws
Not to forget is the fact that birds can fly. In fact, many argue that this is one of the most common traits of birds worldwide. While these traits are common with birds, certain birds have them and some don’t and that’s why we currently have different types of birds. Just to give you an example of the types of birds currently; there are the Waterfowl Birds, Kiwis, Extinct Birds, Hummingbirds, and Swifts just to mention a few.
The Different Types of Reptiles
One of the reasons why so many find it shocking that birds are indeed reptiles is the lack of knowledge, in particular lack of knowledge about reptiles. That said four types of reptiles are very common today. For this particular post, however, we’ll be looking at one particular group of reptiles and that’s the archosaurs. We’ll get to focus on this particular group given the fact that it’s the only group of reptiles that birds are closely related to.
Worth noting about the archosaurs group of reptiles is that it’s where the dinosaurs belong. Dinosaurs, for those who were not aware, had some slight similarities with the likes of lizards, turtles, and snakes. Furthermore, they are believed to have all been killed making them all extinct.
The use of the word “believed” when referring to dinosaurs being killed was intentional given the fact that birds were left out. What I am trying to say is that yes, birds are dinosaurs. Despite the assumptions many have when it comes to dinosaurs, it’s worth noting that not all dinosaurs were killed. A group of small feathered dinosaurs was left behind.
Fast forward 60 plus million years later and the remaining group of feathered dinosaurs evolved into what many of us know as birds today. So if you happen to visit your local zoo anytime soon and see that birds are in the same space as reptiles or more precisely dinosaurs then don’t be alarmed because they are where they are supposed to be.
Conclusion for “Are Birds Reptiles”
I hope we can all agree by now that birds are indeed reptiles. For those however who are still skeptical I’d suggest paying a visit to a local zoo. While there, try speaking with one of the reps at the zoo or maybe the zookeeper, they’ll be able to share great details on how birds are reptiles or how they are actually dinosaurs because I am sure many are still very skeptical about that particular point.
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