Sinornithosaurus
SIGH-nor-NITH-oh-SORE-us /ˌsaɪnɔːrˈnɪθoʊˌsɔːrəs/
Accepted genus
Chinese bird lizard
- Sino- · Late Latin / Greek · Chinese, China
- ornithos · Greek · bird
- sauros · Greek · lizard
The name combines the Late Latin/Greek prefix for "China" with the Greek words for "bird" and "lizard", giving "Chinese bird lizard". It was chosen because this small feathered dromaeosaurid from China showed many bird-like features and preserved feather-like filaments.
- Named by
- Xu, Wang and Wu
- Year named
- 1999
- Period
- Early Cretaceous
- Stage
- Aptian
- Found in
- Yixian Formation, Liaoning, China
A small feathered dromaeosaurid theropod. The type species is S. millenii. Claims that it was venomous have been disputed by later studies.