Chiappeavis

Chiappe's bird

• Chiappe · Modern (surname) · Luis Chiappe, paleontologist who studies early birds
• avis · Latin · bird

Chiappeavis honors the paleontologist Luis Chiappe, an authority on Mesozoic birds, combined with the Latin word for "bird". It means "Chiappe's bird". The name was given to a small, early bird from the Early Cretaceous of China.

Named by

O'Connor et al.

Year named

2016

Period

Early Cretaceous

Stage

Aptian

Found in

Jiufotang Formation, Liaoning Province, China

An enantiornithine bird, so it counts as an avian (bird) dinosaur. The type species is Chiappeavis magnapremaxillo. It is notable for having a fan-shaped tail and a hand and wing structure that suggest it could fly well.