Janavis fossil map
Where fossils of Janavis have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 66 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 66 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Theropods |
|---|---|
| Lived | 72.2–66 million years ago (Maastrichtian) |
| Periods | Cretaceous |
| Named by | Benito et al. 2022 |
| Fossil records | 1 occurrences at 1 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | Belgium |
| Rock formations | Maastricht |
About Janavis
Janavis (from the Roman god Janus and the Latin avis for bird) is an extinct toothed bird belonging to the Ichthyornithes from the Late Cretaceous of Belgium. The genus has one named species, Janavis finalidens (from Latin finalis, meaning ending or final, and dens, for tooth) that was discovered in the 1990s, reported in 2002, and described in 2022. Recovered almost simultaneously from the same area and age as Asteriornis maastrichtensis, then the oldest known modern bird, it provides information on the evolution and divergence of basal and modern birds, especially on the evolutionary modifications of bird skulls.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Janavis (revision 1315437494), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 23 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q115813367.
