Microraptor's World
Ancient bird
Confuciusornis
When feathered dinosaurs roamed the land, true birds soared through
the Liaoning skies. Some were as big as albatrosses; others, such as
this Confuciusornis, were more the size of pigeons. This
fossil, dating to about 120 million years ago, reveals
characteristics that make Confuciusornis a mix of primitive
(more dinosaur-like) and advanced (modern bird-like) traits: Like
dinosaurs and the oldest known bird, Archaeopteryx, it has
three fingers that are not fused into a single element, but like
modern birds, it has a toothless beak and a well-developed shoulder
girdle to power flight.