One recent fossil of Archaeopteryx was identified as Compsognathus, a small theropod dinosaur, until it was later re-examined. The problem had arisen because there were no obvious feather impressions, which shows the similarity between dinosaurs and birds.
Which recent discoveries have changed views on the origins of birds?
Many recent discoveries show how birds may have evolved. A fossil found in Madagascar had a sickle-shaped claw on it foot like the predatory theropods Deinonychus and Velociraptor. It also had hollow bones like a bird, and traces of the points where feathers would have been attached. Fossils of a whole range of feathered dinosaurs are now being found in many countries, and especially in China. All these creatures were built along the same lines as birds. Some were undoubtedly dinosaurs and would have used their feathered forelimbs to help them run, rather than to fly.
How might flight have developed?
The evolution of birds has met with more argument than almost any other part of palaeontology. The reason why flight developed will probably never be proved. Some scientists suggest that small feathered dinosaurs ran along the ground flapping their arms to help them catch their prey. Others suggest that flight started when the ancestors of modern birds climbed and leaped about in trees, using their feathers to extend their leaps and eventually to glide.
The simple structure of the wings of Archaeopteryx means that it would have been an extremely clumsy flyer. It probably needed to use the fingers that were attached to its wings to help it scramble about in the trees.
Picture credit: google