World of Dinosaurs/Confuciusornis

Basics

Confuciusornis means "Confucius Bird".

Confuciusornis lived during the Cretaceous Period.

Anatomy

Confuciusornis is about the size of a crow.

Confuciusornis is an early bird, while also having some theropod traits.

It is the oldest known bird to have a beak.

Note the beak.

Phylogeny

Confuciusornis is a theropod.

All theropods are dinosaurs.

All dinosaurs are amniotes and all dinosaurs are tetrapods.

Biomechanics

Confuciusornis is the first bird to have a beak.

Its leg posture was also more crouched than previous theropods.

Fossil Record

It is found in some beautiful specimens in China.

This specimen is so well preserved that feathers are maintained.

Ecology

The area Confuciusornis lived was a cool climate.

Reptiles such as crocodilians are not found.

Trees were prevalent.

Biogeography

There were frequent volcanic eruptions during this time.

There was also flooding at the time.