| Cratonavis Temporal range: Early Cretaceous | |
|---|---|
| |
| An artist's depiction of Cratonavis zhui | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| clade: | Dinosauria |
| Order: | Saurischia |
| Suborder: | Theropoda |
| Family: | †Jinguofortisidae |
| Genus: | †Cratonavis |
| Species: | †C. zhui |
| Type species | |
| †Cratonavis zhui Li et al., 2023 | |
Cratonavis ("Craton bird") is an extinct genus of pygostylian avialian from the Early Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation of Liaoning Province, China. Cratonavis is known from a complete skeleton of the type species C. zhui, which is currently the only known species.
Discovery[]
The holotype specimen of Cratonavis zhui and details
The holotype specimen of Cratonavis zhui (IVPP V31106) was found in the sediments of Jiufotang Formation, near the Xiaotaizi village of the Jianchang County, located in the Liaoning Province of China. The specimen consists of a complete and articulated skeleton with preserved feathers, and dates back to the Aptian age of the early Cretaceous period.
Cratonavis was described and named as a new genus and species of jinguofortisid in 2023 by Li Zhiheng, Wang Min, Thomas A. Stidham, and Zhou Zhonghe. The generic name, "Cratonavis" means "Craton bird", from the word "Craton", which refers to the North China Craton, a contenential crustal block, and the word "avis", which means "bird" in Latin. The specific name of C. zhui is named after Zhu Rixiang, a geologist who studied the destruction of the North China Craton.
Classification[]
In 2023, a study by Li et al. recovered Cratonavis as a member of the Jinguofortisidae. It had been found to be a non-ornithothoracine pygostylian, and as the sister taxon to Chongmingia.