Cathayornis
Name:
Cathayornis.
Phonetic: Cah-fay-or-niss.
Named By: Z.-H. Zhou, F. Jin &
J.-Y. Zhang - 1992.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Dinosauria,
Saurischia, Theropoda, Ornithothoraces, Enantiornithes.
Species: C. yandica
(type). Possibly also C. aberransis, C. chabuensis.
Diet: Insectivore/Carnivore?
Size: Unavailable.
Known locations: China, Liaoning Province -
Jiufotang Formation.
Time period: Aptian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Partial remains.
Cathayornis is a genus of enantiornithine bird that lived in China during the early Cretaceous. While the type species of Cathayornis, C. yandica is valid, two further species C. aberransis and C. chabuensis have also been named but are questionable as they consist of partial body parts that are not preserved in with the type species, and so cannot be assigned without a degree of uncertainty. A further species called C. caudatus has been renamed as a distinct genus called Houornis, but this assessment too has been controversial.
Further reading
- [Preliminary report on a Mesozoic bird from Liaoning, China].
- Kexue Tongbao 1992(5):435-437. - Z.-H. Zhou, F.
Jin & J.-Y. Zhang - 1992.
- Taxonomical reappraisal of Cathayornithidae (Aves:
Enantiornithes). - Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. -
M. Wang & D. Liu - 2015.
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