Palaeontology: A new feathered dinosaur from China (Nature Communications)

A newly described feathered dinosaur found in northeastern China adds evidence to the theory that flight-related features evolved differently in various bird-like dinosaur groups. The findings, reported in Nature Communications, are based on the analysis of an exceptionally well-preserved fossil of a microraptorine (a small dinosaur with feathers and wings) found in a geological formation estimated to be between 145 and 100 million years old.

Microraptorines were small, bird-like predatory dinosaurs and close relatives of birds. These feathered dinosaurs were most commonly discovered in northeastern China. Fossils show that some microraptorines had long feathers on both their forelimbs and hindlimbs, which suggests that they may have been adapted for flight. Whether these features mark the origins of flight adaptions in Paraves (the group that includes microraptorines and birds), or whether such features evolved independently remains an open question, although evidence suggests the latter theory is more likely.

Andrea Cau, Qiang Ji, Xuri Wang, and colleagues describe a new species called Norellraptor barsboldi, found in the Lower Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation in Liaoning, China. The complete skeleton measures 57 centimetres and parts of its plumage are preserved.  Analysis of the fossil indicate that it was at least three years old when it died and reveal a collection of features associated with flight. The authors compare these results across an evolutionary tree,  finding that around 30% of anatomical changes identified across microraptorine evolution also evolved in the bird lineage. However, the order in which these shared features appeared differed between the two groups.

These findings challenge the idea that microraptorines and birds inherited either a common flight apparatus or a shared developmental process that drove its evolution. The authors conclude that different selective pressures probably shaped the flight-related features of each lineage. Further fossil and bone-growth evidence will be needed to test how widespread the pattern was among bird-like dinosaurs.

• Article
• Open access
• Published: 29 September 2026

Wang, X., Ji, Y., Cau, A. et al. Independent assembly of the flight apparatus in a non-avian dinosaur clade. Nat Commun 17, 10074 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-77804-6
 

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