Pengornis
- Length
- 5 m (16.4 ft)
- Period
- Early Cretaceous (120 Mya)
- Place
- Asia · China
- Food
- Herbivore
- Clade
- Pengornithidae
Pengornis is the largest known enantiornithean bird from the Early Cretaceous of northeast China. The name derives from “Peng”, which refers to a mythological bird from Chinese folklore, and “-ornis”, which means bird in Greek.
Pengornis was originally known from a single adult fossil, described by Zhou et al. in 2008. This holotype is in the collection of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing China. Its accession number is IVPP V15336. It was collected from the Jiufotang Formation, at Dapingfang, Chaoyang, Liaoning China. A second, juvenile specimen, IVPP V18632, was described by Hu, Zhou, and O’Connor in 2014. In 2015 this was referred to Parapengornis.
What we know
- Named by Zhou, Clarke, & Zhang, 2008.
- Fossils found in Asia and China.
What we guess
The reconstruction notes for Pengornis — soft tissue, color, behavior — haven't been written up yet. Only the recorded basics above are filled in so far.