Flight aerodynamics in enantiornithines: Information from a new Chinese Early Cretaceous bird

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 12; no. 10; p. e0184637
• Main Authors: Liu, Di, Chiappe, Luis M, Serrano, Francisco, Habib, Michael, Zhang, Yuguang, Meng, Qinjing
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 11.10.2017; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Aerodynamics; Analysis; Animals; Aves; Biology; Biology and Life Sciences; Biomechanical Phenomena; Biota; Birds; Birds - anatomy & histology; Birds - physiology; Body Weight; Bone and Bones - anatomy & histology; Cretaceous; Cretaceous period; Elongation; Enantiornithines; Extremities - anatomy & histology; Feathers; Feathers - anatomy & histology; Flight; Flight, Animal - physiology; Fossils; Medicine and Health Sciences; Morphology; Museums; Natural history; New species; People and Places; Plumage; Regression Analysis; Reynolds number; Sturnus vulgaris; Terminology as Topic; Time Factors; China; Beijing China; Los Angeles California; California; United States > US
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0184637

We describe an exquisitely preserved new avian fossil (BMNHC-PH-919) from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation of eastern Inner Mongolia, China. Although morphologically similar to Cathayornithidae and other small-sized enantiornithines from China's Jehol Biota, many morphological features indicate that it represents a new species, here named Junornis houi. The new fossil displays most of its plumage including a pair of elongated, rachis-dominated tail feathers similarly present in a variety of other enantiornithines. BMNHC-PH-919 represents the first record of a Jehol enantiornithine from Inner Mongolia, thus extending the known distribution of these birds into the eastern portion of this region. Furthermore, its well-preserved skeleton and wing outline provide insight into the aerodynamic performance of enantiornithines, suggesting that these birds had evolved bounding flight-a flight mode common to passeriforms and other small living birds-as early as 125 million years ago.