Protopteryx

first wing (or first feather)

• protos · Greek · first
• pteryx · Greek · wing, feather

Protopteryx combines the Greek words "protos" (first) and "pteryx" (wing or feather). The name reflects its status as a very early, primitive member of the enantiornithines, an extinct group of birds. Its tail had a pair of unusual, ribbon-like feathers.

Named by

Zhang and Zhou

Year named

2000

Period

Early Cretaceous

Stage

Barremian

Found in

Huajiying Formation, Fengning County, Hebei Province, China

A small enantiornithine bird. Birds are avian dinosaurs, so it counts as a dinosaur in the modern sense. The type species is Protopteryx fengningensis. The exact age of the Huajiying Formation is debated (roughly Hauterivian–Barremian).