We have classified birds wrong for years and ancient DNA proves it

Researchers have uncovered a mistake that led us to misclassify birds for years, thanks to a sneaky piece of misleading DNA.

Since 2014, birds have been divided into two large families: Passerera and Columbea. The second group contains doves and flamingos; the first includes all other birds.

It took years of research to achieve the first family tree with genome recognition because classifying birds, which include more than 10,000 species, is a complex task.

It is also difficult to understand the origin of modern birds since they are among the oldest species on the planet, the dinosaurs who survived the meteorite.

Science also sees a little blurry in the evolution of birds, thanks to the cataclysm that killed all their contemporary species. It is unclear how birds survived and evolved after that.

Their ancient DNA is responsible for their years-long misclassification. A sticky portion of their genome that did not mix with the rest for thousands of years confused researchers.

Image: Harshit Suryawanshi / Unsplash

To detect the mistake, an international research team analyzed the genome of more than 360 bird species, representing about 92% of all bird families.

The task was to detail more than 90 million years of evolution, oded in the species' genome. The researchers used a suite of computer algorithms known as ASTRA to do that.

According to PopSci, the program helps infer evolutionary relationships quickly. It allows researchers to integrate the immense amount of data they had to create new groups.

Thanks to that, the team designed a new classification that accurately accounted for genetic similarities. It points to four main groups instead of two.

Flamingos and doves are not as closely related as science had previously thought. The new classification gives flamingos an individual branch and places doves with the other birds.

According to PopSci, the investigation also gave clues on how the class diversified into so many species after the cataclysm that killed dinosaurs.

According to PopSci, the research was part of an international effort to draft the genomes of bird species. That technology can help do the same with other species in future investigations.

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