Dinosaurs A to Z
Troodontidae

Jianianhualong tengi

"Jianianhua dragon"

Generic raptor body-plan outline
You 1.8 m (5.9 ft) tall
Jianianhualong 1 m (3.3 ft) long
as long as 2 people standing fingertip to fingertip
generic raptor body plan, scaled to length — not a silhouette of Jianianhualong
Length
1 m (3.3 ft)
Period
Early Cretaceous (124.4 Mya)
Place
China
Food
Carnivore
Clade
Troodontidae Dinosauria Saurischia Theropoda Coelurosauria Small, brainy, feathered theropods.
Jianianhualong reconstruction by Xing Xu, Philip Currie, Michael Pittman, Lida Xing, Qingjin Meng, Junchang Lü, D
Reconstruction · Xing Xu, Philip Currie, Michael Pittman, Lida Xing, Qingjin Meng, Junchang Lü, D (CC-BY)

Jianianhualong (meaning “Jianianhua dragon”) is a genus of troodontid theropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of China. It contains a single species, Jianianhualong tengi, named in 2017 by Xu Xing and colleagues based on an articulated skeleton preserving feathers. The feathers at the middle of the tail of Jianianhualong are asymmetric, being the first record of asymmetrical feathers among the troodontids. Despite aerodynamic differences from the flight feathers of modern birds, the feathers in the tail vane of Jianianhualong could have functioned in drag reduction whilst the animal was moving. The discovery of Jianianhualong supports the notion that asymmetrical feathers appeared early in the evolutionary history of the Paraves.

Jianianhualong possesses a combination of traits seen in basal as well as traits seen in derived troodontids.

What we know

  • Named by Xu et al., 2017.
  • Body length estimated at about 1 m.
  • Fossils found in China.

What we guess

The reconstruction notes for Jianianhualong — soft tissue, color, behavior — haven't been written up yet. Only the recorded basics above are filled in so far.