孔子鸟飞行能力相关问题研究现状与展望

Research Status and Prospect of the Flying Ability and Its Related Issues of Confuciusornis

孔子鸟因演化地位的重要性和其他同期鸟类无法比拟的大量精美标本,一直是古鸟类学研究的重点之一,目前对孔子鸟的研究程度也超过了其他许多鸟类,但是关于它的飞行能力等相关问题却仍然存在着大量未知。本文调研国内外相关文献,从形态结构、进化特点、飞行能力以及今后研究方向等方面进行了提炼和总结。孔子鸟骨骼上进步特征与原始特征共存,反映了早期鸟类演化过程中显著的镶嵌进化现象;前、后肢骨骼形态揭示孔子鸟飞行能力不强,不具备从地面直接起飞的能力;孔子鸟前、后肢羽毛均有提供飞行时升力的特征,尾羽也与现代鸟类不同,暗示它与现代鸟类的运动方式可能有很大不同;孔子鸟的运动形态和飞行策略的确认尚需要大量的验证工作;形态功能定量化研究为今后孔子鸟飞行相关问题深入研究指出了新的方向和思路。

Confuciusornis is one of the focuses of paleornithology, which has important evolutionary status and large number of exquisite specimens, especially when compared with other birds of the same period. At present, the research degree of Confuciusornis is also higher than that of many other birds, but there are still a lot of unknown problems about its flight ability and other related issues. In this paper, relevant literatures at home and abroad were investigated and summarized from the aspects of morphological structure, evolutionary characteristics, flight capability and future research direction and so on. The progressive features coexist with the original features on the bones of Confuciusornis, which reflects the remarkable Mosaic evolution in the early bird evolution process. The bone morphology of the forelimbs and hindlimbs revealed that Confuciusornis was not strong enough to fly and had no ability to take off directly from the ground. The feathers of the forelimbs and hindlimbs of Confuciusornis have the characteristics of providing lift force in flight. The tail feathers are also different from modern birds, suggesting that the movement mode of Confuciusornis may be quite different from modern birds. Therefore, a great deal of verification work is needed to confirm the movement pattern and flight strategy of Confuciusornis. And the quantitative study of morphological function points out a new direction and idea for the future in-depth study on the flight of Confuciusornis.