Jinfengopteryx

Jinfengopteryx
	Live reconstruction of Jinfengopteryx elegans
Temporal occurrence
	Lower Cretaceous ( Hauterivium )
	133.9 to 130.7 million years
Locations
	China;
Systematics
	Dinosaur (dinosauria)
	Lizard dinosaur (Saurischia)
	Theropoda
	Deinonychosauria
	Troodontidae
	Jinfengopteryx
Scientific name
	Jinfengopteryx
	Ji et al. , 2005
Art
	Jinfengopteryx elegans;

Jinfengopteryx is a genus of feathered theropod dinosaurs from the Early Cretaceous of China .

Within the theropods, Jinfengopteryx is placed with the troodontids and reached a length of about 55 centimeters. So far only the type species J. elegans is known, which was scientifically described in 2005 .

The generic name is made up of "Jinfeng", "golden phoenix " (the queen of birds in Chinese folklore ) and the ancient Greek word πτέρυξ / pteryx for "wing".

Fossil record and age

The holotype of Jinfengopteryx elegans on display at the Hong Kong Science Museum

Jinfengopteryx is a unique, nearly complete skeleton from the province of Hebei known (Catalog number CAGS-IG-04-0801), which is located in the anatomical composite and footprints of contour feathers shows. However, it does not show long contour feathers on the hind legs, as found in related dinosaurs such as Pedopenna . Individual small, oval structures with a reddish-yellow color have also been preserved. It may be the remains of eggs or seeds that the dinosaur ate.

Stratigraphically , the fossils come from the undated Qiaotou Formation , which is why their exact age is not known. This formation , however, is below the well-known Yixian Formation , which dates to the Lower Cretaceous ; thus Jinfengopteryx probably lived during the Middle Lower Cretaceous ( Hauterivium ).

Systematics

Size comparison between Jinfengopteryx and humans

The authors of the first scientific description consider Jinfengopteryx to be the most basic (most primitive) representative of the birds (Avialae) and also a member of the Archeopterygidae family .

In 2007 they published further comparisons between Jinfengopteryx and Archeopteryx and stuck to the classification as Archeopterygids, but did not offer any phylogenetic analyzes that could support such an assignment. Luis Chiappe pointed out that Jinfengopteryx had far more in common with the Troodontids than with Archeopteryx - for example, an elongated, sickle-like claw was clearly visible on the second toe of the Jinfengopteryx , which is a characteristic feature of the Deinonychosauria . Numerous other scientists also suspected belonging to the troodontids, such as the paleontologists Xu and Norell (2006), who saw similarities in body structure and teeth. In a 2007 publication that analyzed the relationships between dromaeosaurids , troodontids, and early birds, Turner and his co-workers described Jinfengopteryx as a troodontid and as the first member of this taxon to be identified with fletching.

Individual evidence

^ ^A ^b Alan H. Turner, Diego Pol, Julia A. Clarke, Gregory M. Erickson, Mark A. Norell : A Basal Dromaeosaurid and Size Evolution Preceding Avian Flight. In: Science . Vol. 317, No. 5843, 2007, pp. 1378-1381, doi: 10.1126 / science.1144066 , PMID 17823350 , digital version (PDF; 407.41 kB) .

↑ ^a ^b ^c Qiang Ji, Shu-An Ji, Jun-Chang Lü, Hai-Lu You, Wen Chen, Yong-Qing Liu, Yan-Xue Liu: First avialan bird from China (Jinfengopteryx elegans gen. Et sp. Nov. ). In: Geological Bulletin of China. Vol. 24, No. 3, 2005, ISSN 1671-2552 , pp. 197-205, online .

↑ Shu'an Ji, Qiang Ji: Jinfengopteryx compared to Archeopteryx, with comments on the mosaic evolution of long-tailed avialan birds. In: Acta Geologica Sinica. (English edition). Vol. 81, No. 3, 2007, ISSN 1000-9515 , pp. 337-343, doi: 10.1111 / j.1755-6724.2007.tb00957.x .

↑ Luis M. Chiappe : Glorified Dinosaurs. The Origin and Early Evolution of Birds. UNSW Press et al., Sydney et al. a 2007, ISBN 978-0-86840-413-4 .

^ Xu Xing , Mark A. Norell : Non-avian dinosaur fossils from the Lower Cretaceous Jehol Group of western Liaoning, China. In: Geological Journal. Vol. 41, No. 3/4, = Special Issue: Originations and Radiations in the Biota of China. Part 1, 2006, ISSN 0072-1050 , pp. 419-437, doi: 10.1002 / gj.1044 .

Web links

Commons : Troodontidae - collection of images, videos and audio files

Discussion about the systematics of the Jinfengopteryx (in English)

Reconstruction of the Jinfengopteryx skeleton

[AHTetal07-1] A ^b Alan H. Turner, Diego Pol, Julia A. Clarke, Gregory M. Erickson, Mark A. Norell : A Basal Dromaeosaurid and Size Evolution Preceding Avian Flight. In: Science . Vol. 317, No. 5843, 2007, pp. 1378-1381, doi: 10.1126 / science.1144066 , PMID 17823350 , digital version (PDF; 407.41 kB) .

[Jietal05-2] Qiang Ji, Shu-An Ji, Jun-Chang Lü, Hai-Lu You, Wen Chen, Yong-Qing Liu, Yan-Xue Liu: First avialan bird from China (Jinfengopteryx elegans gen. Et sp. Nov. ). In: Geological Bulletin of China. Vol. 24, No. 3, 2005, ISSN 1671-2552 , pp. 197-205, online .

[ji&ji2007-3] Shu'an Ji, Qiang Ji: Jinfengopteryx compared to Archeopteryx, with comments on the mosaic evolution of long-tailed avialan birds. In: Acta Geologica Sinica. (English edition). Vol. 81, No. 3, 2007, ISSN 1000-9515 , pp. 337-343, doi: 10.1111 / j.1755-6724.2007.tb00957.x .

[chiappe2007-4] Luis M. Chiappe : Glorified Dinosaurs. The Origin and Early Evolution of Birds. UNSW Press et al., Sydney et al. a 2007, ISBN 978-0-86840-413-4 .

[xu&norell2006-5] Xu Xing , Mark A. Norell : Non-avian dinosaur fossils from the Lower Cretaceous Jehol Group of western Liaoning, China. In: Geological Journal. Vol. 41, No. 3/4, = Special Issue: Originations and Radiations in the Biota of China. Part 1, 2006, ISSN 0072-1050 , pp. 419-437, doi: 10.1002 / gj.1044 .