Pedopenna

Say it like this: “ped-oh-PEN-uh”

Pedopenna daohugouensis

Pedopenna ate meat and walked on two legs. It lived in the Middle Jurassic. Bones have been found in China.

Quiz me on Pedopenna

When: Middle Jurassic (Bathonian · Callovian) · roughly 168.2 to 161.5 million years ago
Named in: 2005 · Xu, X.; Zhang, F.
Hip height: 0.3 m · 1 ft
Length: 1 m · 3 ft
Weight: 1 kg · 2 lb
Found in: China · Haifanggou
Food and walking: Carnivore · Two legs
Kind: sharp-clawed runner · Theropod
Family branch: Paraves

The story in short

In 2005, X. Xu and F. Zhang published the name Pedopenna. The name means “foot feather.”

Fossils referred to Pedopenna date to the Middle Jurassic (Bathonian · Callovian), roughly 168.2 to 161.5 million years ago. Finds come from China, including the Haifanggou Formation. It was a carnivore and walked on two legs.

Published estimates put Pedopenna at a length near 1 m, hips about 0.3 m high, and a body mass around 1 kg.

On the family tree it sits in Paraves, among the theropod dinosaurs.

Close relatives

Euronychodon

Euronychodon portucalensis

Late Cretaceous (Campanian · Maastrichtian) · roughly 83.6 to 66 million years ago

Imperobator

Imperobator antarcticus

Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago

Overoraptor

Overoraptor chimentoi

Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian · Turonian) · roughly 100.5 to 89.8 million years ago