Birds:

This is a short list of the 138 different species of birds found at La Brea.

Many of the birds found at La Brea are extinct, but most have common descendants which can be found locally today in the Southwestern United States. The preservation of the bird fossils is unique to the La Brea tar pits. Birds have hollow bones which aid them to fly, but his does not bode well for fossil preservation. At La Brea this was different. When the birds were buried in the asphaltic material, it impregnated into the hollow bones, stabalizing them against breakage. This allowed whole bird skeletons to be preserved intact. The bird fossils found at La Brea are thought to be some of the best ever found in the world.