Confuciusornis sanctus #210 Baryonyx unlike most saber-toothed cats of

unlike most saber-toothed cats of the time

110-90 million years ago

Cleveland-Lloyd Quarry

and other inhabitants of the area allow us to get an extremely good view of the environment of these ancient fresh water lakes

caudal fin

Confuciusornis sanctus #210 Baryonyx unlike most saber-toothed cats ofConfuciusornis sanctus ("the sacred bird of Confucius") is the earliest known beaked bird. Discovered in 1994, Confuciusornis represents an important side branch in avian evolution. Though Confuciusornis and its descendants all became extinct, it is the earliest known bird to abandon its reptilian teeth in favor of a light weight keratin beak. Remains of Confuciusornis are found at an Early Cretacaeous fossil site known as Sihetun in the Liaoning