Dalingheornis

Dalingheornis Temporal range: Early Cretaceous, 122 Ma PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Subclass:	Enantiornithes
Genus:	Dalingheornis Zhang et al., 2006
Species
Zhang et al., 2006 (type)

Dalingheornis is a genus of enantiornithine bird. It lived during the Early Cretaceous about 122Ma ago and is known from a single juvenile fossil found in the upper part of the Yixian Formation in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China. It is the first known Mesozoic bird with heterodactyl feet specifically adapted for climbing, and was probably among the most arboreal of the enantiornithines. Unlike its relatives, it had an unusually long (17mm) skeletal tail made up of 20 vertebrae, similar to the tails of dromaeosaurids.^[1]

References

1. ^ Zhang, Z., Hou, L., Hasegawa, Y., O'Connor, J., Martin, L.D. and Chiappe, L.M. (2006). "The first Mesozoic heterodactyl bird from China." Acta Geologica Sinica, 80(5): 631-635.

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