Longirostravis hani
By José Carlos Cortés on @quetzalcuetzpalin-art
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Name: Longirostravis hani
Name Meaning: Long-Snout Bird
First Described: 2004
Described By: Hou et al.
Classification: Dinosauria, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostylia, Ornithothoraces, Enantiornithes, Eoenantiornithes
Longirostravis is an Enantiornithine from the Yixian Formation of China, living about 125 million years ago in the Barremian age of the Early Cretaceous. As such, it lived in a very birdy-dinosaur filled environment, though it did live earlier than the even birdier Jiufotang Biota. It is known from a single specimen that demonstrates it was about the size of a quail, with a wingspan of 32 centimeters and a body length of 17 centimeters. It had a long, tapered, and delicate snout with long and peg-like teeth in the tip of the jaw. It had long, broad wing and very small legs. It also had two long tail feathers (rectrices) that looked like ribbons, and probably would have been used more for display than for flight. It was probably a specialized percher that ate on insects and other animals living in the bark of trees with its long jaws.
Sources:
Martyniuk, M. P. 2012. A Field Guide to Mesozoic Birds and other Winged Dinosaurs. Pan Aves; Vernon, New Jersey.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longirostravis
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