Protarchaeopteryx
Protarchaeopteryx robusta
Pronounced:
Pro -tar - key - Op - ter - ix
Diet:
Carnivore (Meat-Eater)
Name Means:
"First Archaeopteryx"
Length:
3 feet (1 m)
Height:
2 feet (.7 m)
Weight:
10 pounds (4 kilos)
Time:
Early Cretaceous - 135 MYA
Fossil
remains for this
Dinosaur have
been found in
Asia
Protarchaeopteryx was a small,
feathered, bird-like dinosaur that lived
in China. It was discovered in 1996 and
it is the first dinosaur fossil to
positively prove that some dinosaurs had
feathers. The rock that holds the fossil
shows many small details and the
feathers are seen clearly. However, the
type of feathers on this dinosaur are
not the same kind seen on modern birds
that fly. They are not flight feathers,
so scientists think that these feathers
were used to help keep the dinosaur warm
or that they were used to help identify
each other. This dinosaur is a member of
the raptor family that includes
Velociraptor.
Protarchaeopteryx is based on a
remarkable fossil preserved in the
fine-grained stone from Liaoning,
China. It laid to rest the argument
about dinosaurs being feathered. Now
discussion has shifted to the type
of feathers that were on the
dinosaurs and when flight feathers
evolved. |
