Tianyuraptor
- Lived
- 126 to 120 million years ago, Early Cretaceous
- Diet
- Carnivore
- Group
- Theropods, Dromaeosauridae
- Found in
- China
- Named by
- Zheng et al. 2009
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
125 million years ago
Habitat
It lived among lakes and forests in Early Cretaceous China. Other dinosaurs from the Yixian Formation include Psittacosaurus, Sinornithosaurus and Yutyrannus.
Field notes
About Tianyuraptor
What it was like
Tianyuraptor was a dromaeosaur, a feathered hunter related to Microraptor. It had long legs and unusually short arms for its group.
Its world
It lived in the Early Cretaceous, in what is now China. It comes from the Yixian Formation, where it shared the land with the feathered tyrannosaur Yutyrannus, the small hunter Sinornithosaurus and the plant eater Psittacosaurus.
How it was found
Zheng and colleagues named Tianyuraptor in 2009, from a nearly complete skeleton.
Field gallery
More views of Tianyuraptor
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
1 of 3
Lived alongside
Found in the same rock formations
A rock formation can hold fossils laid down millions of years apart, so not every animal here met Tianyuraptor.
The evidence
The science behind Tianyuraptor
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- A nearly complete skeleton preserves the skull, backbone and limbs.
- Its arms were unusually short for a dromaeosaur, while its hind legs were long.
- Its wishbone was comparatively small.
Borrowed from relatives
- Most of its body shape follows its own skeleton.
- Broad feathered wings and tail feathers are plausible from Zhenyuanlong, another short-armed dromaeosaur.
Still unknown
- The exact shape and color of its feathers.
- What it used its short arms for.
- How its proportions changed as it grew.
Discovery timeline
- 2003Its worldZhou, Barrett & Hilton
- 2009Named itZheng et al.
- 2015Close relativeLü & Brusatte
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Tianyuraptor
Its world
Reviewed the plants and animals of the fossil ecosystem that includes Tianyuraptor's formation, highlighting feathered dinosaurs and early birds.
An exceptionally preserved Lower Cretaceous ecosystem. Nature 421: 807-814
Read the paper : An exceptionally preserved Lower Cretaceous ecosystem (opens in a new tab)Named it
Described a nearly complete skeleton with short arms and a small wishbone, revealing varied body shapes among early dromaeosaurs.
A short-armed dromaeosaurid from the Jehol Group of China with implications for early dromaeosaurid evolution. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 277: 211-217
Read the paper : A short-armed dromaeosaurid from the Jehol Group of China with implications for early dromaeosaurid evolution (opens in a new tab)Close relative
Zhenyuanlong had broad feathered wings despite short arms, providing a model for restoring Tianyuraptor's feathers.
A large, short-armed, winged dromaeosaurid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Early Cretaceous of China and its implications for feather evolution. Scientific Reports 5
Read the paper : A large, short-armed, winged dromaeosaurid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Early Cretaceous of China and its implications for feather evolution (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Dromaeosauridae
Sources: Wikidata