Parapengornis fossil map
Where fossils of Parapengornis have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 115 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 115 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 | 125.77–113.2 million years ago (Barremian to Aptian) |
| Periods | Cretaceous |
| Family | Pengornithidae |
| Named by | Hu et al. 2015 |
| Fossil records | 2 occurrences at 1 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | China |
| Rock formations | Yixian, Jiufotang |
About Parapengornis
Parapengornis is an extinct genus of enantiornithean bird from the Lower Cretaceous of what is now China. The holotype specimen was discovered in the Jiufotang Formation near Lingyuan, western Liaoning province, and was catalogued as IVPP V18687. The nearly complete, articulated specimen is preserved on a slab and has impressions of pennaceous feathers. Only parts of the sternum, the left hand, and right foot are missing. In 2015, it became the basis of the new genus and species Parapengornis eurycaudatus, named by the Chinese palaeontologists Han Hu, Jingmai K. O'Connor, and Zhonghe Zhou. The generic name consists of the Latin word para and the name of the related genus Pengornis, indicating their close relationship. The name Pengornis is itself derived from "Peng", a mythological bird from Chinese folklore, and ornis, which means bird in Greek. The specific name is derived from the Latin words eury, meaning broad, and caudatus, meaning tail, in reference to the broad and expanded pygostyle (the last fused vertebrae of a bird's tail). A nearly complete specimen formerly assigned to Pengornis was also reassigned to Parapengornis by these authors.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Parapengornis (revision 1314591740), 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: Q41535857.
