Shanweiniao
Name:
Shanweiniao
(fan tailed bird).
Phonetic: Shan-wy-ne-ow.
Named By: J. K. O'Connor, X. Wang, L.
M. Chiappe, C. Gao, Q. Meng, X. Cheng & J.
Liu - 2009.
Classification: Chordata, Dinosauria,
Saurischia, Theropoda, Enantiornithes, Longipterygidae.
Species: S. cooperorum
(type).
Diet: Insectivore?
Size: Unavailable.
Known locations: China, Liaoning Province -
Yixian Formation (Dawangzhanhgzi Member).
Time period: Aptian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Partial remains of an
individual preserved flat on a slab.
Shanweiniao is a genus of enantiornithine bird that lived in China during the Early Cretaceous. When the genus was described in 2010, Shanweiniao was the only known enantiornithine which had a wing structure that was capable of generating lift. The name Shanweiniao means ‘fan tailed bird’, a reference to the structure of the tail feathers. Until the description of Shanweiniao, such a tail had only been seen in one other Mesozoic bird genus called Yixianornis. Shanweiniao is noted for having a snout longer than most other known enantiornithines, and this was likely a feeding specialisation that allowed enantiornithine to pluck out small animals such as insects.
Further reading
- Phylogenetic support for a specialized clade of Cretaceous
enantiornithine birds with information from a new species. -
Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 29(1):188-204. - J. K.
O'Connor, X. Wang, L. M. Chiappe, C. Gao, Q. Meng,
X. Cheng & J. Liu - 2009.
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