Anchiornithidae in the context of "Pedopenna"

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👉 Anchiornithidae in the context of Pedopenna

Pedopenna (/ˌpɛdˈpɛnə/) (meaning "foot feather") is a genus of small, feathered, maniraptoran dinosaur from the Daohugou Beds in China. It is possibly older than Archaeopteryx, though the age of the Daohugou Beds where it was found is debated. A majority of studies suggest that the beds probably date from between the late Middle Jurassic (168 million years ago) and early Late Jurassic Period (164-152 million years ago).

The name Pedopenna refers to the long pennaceous feathers on the metatarsus; daohugouensis refers to the locality of Daohugou, where the holotype was found. Pedopenna daohugouensis probably measured 1 meter (3 ft) or less in length, but since this species is only known from the hind legs, the actual length is difficult to estimate. Pedopenna was originally classified as a paravian, the group of maniraptoran dinosaurs that includes both deinonychosaurs and avialans (the lineage including modern birds), but some scientists have classified it as a true avialan more closely related to modern birds than to deinonychosaurs. More recently, it has been recovered as a scansoriopterygid. The most recent study recovered it within the family Anchiornithidae.

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Anchiornithidae in the context of Paraves

Paraves are a widespread group of theropod dinosaurs that originated in the Middle Jurassic period. In addition to the extinct dromaeosaurids, troodontids, anchiornithids, and possibly the scansoriopterygids, the group also contains the avialans, which include diverse extinct taxa as well as the over 11,000 species of living birds.

Basal members of Paraves are well known for the possession of an enlarged claw on the second digit of the foot, which was held off the ground when walking in some species. A number of differing scientific interpretations of the relationships between paravian taxa exist. New fossil discoveries and analyses make the classification of Paraves an active subject of research.

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Anchiornithidae in the context of Xiaotingia

Xiaotingia is a genus of paravian theropod dinosaur, possibly an anchiornithid, from Middle Jurassic or early Late Jurassic deposits of western Liaoning, China. It contains a single species, Xiaotingia zhengi.

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Anchiornithidae in the context of Aurornis

Aurornis is an extinct genus of anchiornithid theropod dinosaurs from the Jurassic period of China. The genus Aurornis contains a single known species, Aurornis xui (/ˈrɔːrnɪs ˈʃi/). Aurornis xui may be the most basal ("primitive") avialan dinosaur known to date, and it is one of the earliest avialans found to date. The fossil evidence for the animal pre-dates that of Archaeopteryx lithographica, often considered the earliest bird species, by about 10 million years.

Aurornis xui was first described and named by Pascal Godefroit, Andrea Cau, Hu Dong-Yu, François Escuillié, Wu Wenhao and Gareth Dyke in 2013. The generic name is derived from the Latin word aurora, meaning "daybreak" or "dawn", and the Ancient Greek ὄρνις (órnis) meaning "bird". The specific name, A. xui, honors Xu Xing. A 2017 study of specimens of the avialan Anchiornis has found that the traits exhibited by Aurornis fall within the range of variation in Anchiornis, warranting their synonymization.

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