2006-09-30 17:57:54 · 13 answers · asked by Pseudo Obscure 6 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
Birds are descendants of dinosaurs. Or, dinosaurs are the ancestors of birds. Many cladistists, which uses linages to note relationships between current living things and their ancestors, will tell you that birds *are* dinosaurs. However you view it, there is little or no doubt now that birds are descended from a branch of dinosaurs.
One other note...it would be considered correct to say that 'Birds are Dinosaurs' but it is incorrect to say that 'dinosaurs are birds'. The set of creatures called dinosaurs will include the group called birds. But the set of creatures called birds is a subset of the creatures called dinosaurs. So, all creatures called birds are in the set called dinosaurs, but not all dinosaurs are in the set called birds.
2006-09-30 19:36:25 · answer #1 · answered by RjKardo 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
How about saying 'birds are birds' and 'dinosaurs are dinosaurs', just because birds apparently evolved from dinosaurs doesnt make them the same thing. Would you say an ape is a human?
2006-10-01 06:01:17 · answer #2 · answered by May contain traces of nuts 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It's more correct to say that "Birds are dinosaurs".
Dinosaurs are birds is completely wrong, although many dinosaurs are now believed to have had feathers they lack many of the essential characteristics that define birds, such as absence of teeth.
It is technically correct to say "Birds are dinosaurs". There is very strong evidence that birds evolved from small theropod dinosaurs, probably of the maniraptora family. From a purely paleontological point of view birds are avian dinosaurs.
However, you do have to bear in mind that birds separated from dinosaurs further back in time than we did from the small shrew like mammals from which it is believed we evolved. So in a sense it is all semantics - we are hardly shrews!
2006-10-01 05:43:37 · answer #3 · answered by the last ninja 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Sadly, both are wrong - I know, there was a short period about 3 years ago when a link between dinosaurs and birds seemed to have been established, but that has been revised. Now we're back to where we used to be - birds are birds, and dinosaurs are big reptiles.
2006-10-01 01:01:51 · answer #4 · answered by Tahini Classic 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
"Birds are dinosaurs." According to the theory, birds are descended from dinosaurs, so in a sense birds are all dinosaurs. But not all dinosaurs are birds, there are other kinds of dinosaurs that are not birds.
2006-10-01 01:07:38 · answer #5 · answered by The First Dragon 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Birds are dinosaurs" is more correct.
2006-10-01 03:49:39 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Dinosaurs are birds ' ancestor.
2006-10-01 01:05:03 · answer #7 · answered by xxx 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
" Birds are descended from dinosaurs " is more correct.
2006-10-01 01:23:40 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
neither is correct. the feathery dinosaures were not yet birds.
2006-10-01 01:02:16 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
it is more correct to say that..
dinosaurs are extinct.
and
birds are not dinosaurs.
2006-10-01 01:02:31 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋