Sinosauropteryx

Skeletal reconstruction of Sinosauropteryx

• People's Republic of China

• Sinosauropteryx prima

Sinosauropteryx (Greek: " Chinese lizard wing ") is the geologically oldest and the first genus of feathered dinosaurs from the group of carnivorous theropods ( Theropoda ), found in China.

Sinosauropteryx lived about 126-113 million years ago at the time of the Lower Cretaceous ( Aptian ). Two fossils were in 1996 in the Yixian Formation, discovered in Sihetun in the province of Liaoning, a province in northeast China. Sinosauropteryx represents an important transitional form in the evolution of dinosaurs to birds dar.

So far, three very well-preserved fossils of the animal in Liaoning were found with footprints, feathers, stomach contents, not yet deposited eggs and internal organs. The first fossil was found by peasants working in the fields in a prehistoric river basin, which is considered very fruitful locality of fossils.

Features

Sinosauropteryx is a Theropodenart, which is covered with proto- feathers. The down- shaped Urfedern of Sinosauropteryx growing along his back and sides and behind his head look mane shaped, give the dinosaurs not the ability to fly, they were probably more the heat insulation. The springs have a length of about two millimeters ( the longest to 3.8 centimeters).

Full grown Sinosauropteryx reached a body length of about 1.25 meters and walked on two long legs ( biped ). The hip is located at a height of about 29 centimeters. Its weight is estimated at 2.5 kg. Both arms are like those of other theropods short, the teeth are sharp: he probably hunted small animals and insects. Sinosauropteryx is the only Theropodengattung, in whose stomach mammal remains were found, but the jaw bone has not been identified so far. Sinosauropteryx had in relation to the total length of the longest tail of all theropods. Presumably, the tail was used to apply when running fast.

In January 2010, a study was published in the journal Nature, is reported in the melanosomes obtained from fossil in the feathers of Sinosauropteryx. Melanosomes give the springs today's birds their color. The scientists at the British vertebrate paleontologist Michael Benton and Fucheng Zhang were able to demonstrate through the analysis of the structure and distribution of melanosomes a banding of the tail of Sinosauropteryx with light and dark stripes, the darker stripes were red-brown or chestnut colors. .