Fossil discovery in China reveals 150-million-year-old flightless bird

Paleontologists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Fujian Institute of Geological Sciences have identified a 150-million-year-old fossil representing the earliest known instance of a bird lineage losing the ability to fly. The species, named Yuezhuornis yangyuanensis, was discovered in the Zhenghe Fauna of Fujian Province, southeastern China.

Crow-sized and weighing approximately 821 grams, the creature lived during the Late Jurassic period. Anatomical examinations reveal a unique mix of avian and predatory dinosaur traits. While its pelvic region and limbs resemble those of early birds, its skull features closely spaced, serrated teeth similar to deinonychosaurs, such as the Velociraptor. Additionally, its second toe possessed a sickle-shaped claw and a highly flexible joint, suggesting the animal was adapted for terrestrial life and potentially hunting small prey on the ground.