Thinking about how ducks and geese look and sound almost exactly the same as they did over 65 million years ago:
(Art above by artist Nicole Fuller)
This is Vegavis, the oldest known bird of the class Anseriformes. If it looks familiar, that's because it is literally a duck. Vegavis was closely related to modern ducks and geese, with preservation of the sirynx implying it quacked like a duck. Vegavus lived in antarctica around 68-66 million years ago placing it firmly in the late cretaceous period. The diving waterfowl we throw bread at have been doing duck things almost unchanged since before the rest of the dinosaurs went extinct.
Since common knowledge is that birds are derived dinosaurs, the best way to get the true cretaceous dinosaur experience is not to watch Jurassic Park but rather to piss off a goose.
The ultimate lifeform underwater might be a crab, but the king of the air is a duck and you should be scared.
look at this tiny tiny ancient depiction of a goose sheltering babies beneath her wings. 🥺
it's not very detailed but look at the postures of the animals. And the way the goslings are not very young but recognisable as gangly and halfway grown.
Greek, Late Archaic Period, about first half of 5th century B.C.
Most People: Ducks are so silly! Quack quack!
Me: Anseriformes are one of the few groups of animals we know were probably present before and after the end-Cretaceous, meaning ducks are Survivors of Extraterrestrial Nuclear Winters, and we should all fear their power.
Quack Quack.
Please remember not to feed geese and ducks bread. It not only doesn't have nutritional value for them, but it has too much protein and carbs. This can give them a condition called angel wing. This condition causes their wings to become deformed.