Pedopenna

Say it: PED-oh-PEN-uh

Name means: “foot feather”1

Ate: MeatMeat-eating dinosMiddle Jurassic

Pedopenna was a tiny, feathered dinosaur that lived in what is now China. It had long feathers on its feet, which might have helped it glide or show off. This dinosaur was very close to being a bird!2 1

Lived

165 to 162 million years ago4

Middle Jurassic

Fossils found in

Daohugou locality, Nei Mongol, China2

Food

Meat3

Length

up to 1 m1

estimate, only known from hind legs

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

as long as 2 house cats nose to tailas long as 6 bananas end to end

How big was Pedopenna compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

cool stuff

Fun facts

Pedopenna had long, feathery plumes on its feet that were up to 55 mm (2.2 inches) long, almost as long as its foot bones.2

It lived around 165 to 161 million years ago, during the Middle to Late Jurassic, possibly older than the famous early bird Archaeopteryx.3 1

Pedopenna is known only from a partial right leg and some feather impressions, so scientists are not sure exactly how big it was.2

Its foot feathers were not as stiff or aerodynamic as those of some other feathered dinosaurs, so they may have been used for display or balance rather than flight.2

Pedopenna is one of the most bird-like dinosaurs ever found, and some scientists think it was more closely related to birds than any other non-avian dinosaur.2

AI-made picture of Pedopenna — An AI-made picture of how Pedopenna might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Pedopenna

?How big was Pedopenna?

About 1 metre (3 feet) or less in length, but since only a leg is known, the exact size is hard to tell.1

?Did Pedopenna have feathers?

Yes, it had long feathers on its feet, up to 55 mm (2.2 inches) long, and also shorter feathers on its legs.1 2

?Could Pedopenna fly?

Probably not. Its foot feathers were symmetrical and not very stiff, so they were likely used for display or balance, not for flying.1

?Is Pedopenna older than Archaeopteryx?

Possibly. It lived around 168 to 152 million years ago, which may be older than Archaeopteryx, but the exact age is debated.1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Pedopenna
Named by: Xu and Zhang 20054
Group: Meat-eating dinos
Family / clade: Paraves4
Classification: Theropoda4
Age of the rocks: 165 to 162 million years (Callovian)4
Rock formations: Tiaojishan4
Countries: China4
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
Discovery: Pedopenna was named in 2005 by Xu Xing and Zhang Fucheng from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing. The fossil was found near the village of Daohugou in Nei Mongol, China.2 3
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly how old the Daohugou Beds are, so Pedopenna might be from the Middle Jurassic or the Late Jurassic.1 2

Where the facts come from

Pedopenna (en.wikipedia.org)
A new maniraptoran dinosaur from China with long feathers on the metatarsus (ivpp.cas.cn)
PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
Pedopenna in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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