90-million-year-old bird fossils help predict the future of Earth.

Scientists have discovered a 90-million-year-old fossil of a new bird species with a wingspan of over a meter and sharp teeth in the Canadian Arctic.

A 90-million-year-old bird fossil has been found in the Canadian Arctic. Photo: Michael Osadciw.

A team of geologists from the University of Rochester, USA, discovered a 90-million-year-old fossil of a new bird species in the Canadian Arctic, Business Insider reports. The bird, named Tingmiatornis arctica, is one of the oldest bird species ever discovered in the northern hemisphere.

The skeleton of Tingmiatornis arctica shows that it resembled a hybrid between a seagull and a cormorant, with a wingspan of over one meter. Additionally, the bird had sharp teeth and features that allowed it to dive underwater.

The Tingmiatornis arctica fossil was discovered on a lava band formed after numerous volcanic eruptions. Volcanoes spew carbon dioxide into the Earth's atmosphere, causing the greenhouse effect and warming the climate, creating conditions that helped the bird species thrive.

"Ecological factors such as food sources, freshwater environments, and a warm climate have made this area an excellent habitat for Tingmiatornis arctica," explains John Tarduno, head of the Department of Environmental and Earth Sciences at the University of Rochester.

The new bird species helps to build a clearer picture of the ecosystem that existed 93.9-89.8 million years ago in the Canadian Arctic. It was very different from today's Arctic temperatures.

"The fossils show us what the world would have looked like without Arctic ice," said Richard Bono, a doctoral student in the Department of Environmental and Earth Sciences at the University of Rochester.

This discovery will provide further information about the global warming phenomenon occurring at that time, as well as predictions about future climate change on Earth.

According to VNE