| Microraptorians | |
|---|---|
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| Fossil specimen of a Microraptor, with white arrows pointing at preserved feathers | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | Theropoda |
| Family: | †Dromaeosauridae |
| Clade: | †Microraptoria Senter et al., 2004 |
| Genera | |
| Synonyms | |
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Microraptoria (Greek, μίκρος, mīkros: "small"; Latin, raptor: "one who seizes") is a clade of basal dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaurs. Definitive microraptorians lived during the Barremian to Aptian stages of the Early Cretaceous in China. Many are known for long feathers on their legs and may have been semiarboreal powered fliers, some of which were even capable of launching from the ground.[4] Most microraptorians were relatively small; adult specimens of Microraptor range between 77–90 centimetres long (2.53–2.95 ft) and weigh up to 1 kg (2.2 lb), making them some of the smallest known non-avialan dinosaurs.[5][6]
- ^ Kim, Kyung Soo; Lim, Jong Deock; Lockley, Martin G.; Xing, Lida; Kim, Dong Hee; Piñuela, Laura; Romilio, Anthony; Yoo, Jae Sang; Kim, Jin Ho; Ahn, Jaehong (2018-11-15). "Smallest known raptor tracks suggest microraptorine activity in lakeshore setting". Scientific Reports. 8 (1): 16908. Bibcode:2018NatSR...816908K. doi:10.1038/s41598-018-35289-4. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 6237872. PMID 30442900.
- ^ Pittman, Michael; Xu, Xing (2020). "Pennaraptoran Theropod Dinosaurs Past Progress and New Frontiers". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 440: 1. doi:10.1206/0003-0090.440.1.1.
- ^ "辽西下白垩统热河群一新微型驰龙类恐龙和热河生物群驰龙类的生态位分化----中国科学院古脊椎动物与古人类研究所". Archived from the original on 2017-04-11. Retrieved 2017-04-11.
- ^ Dececchi, TA; Larsson, HC; Habib, MB (2016). "The wings before the bird: an evaluation of flapping-based locomotory hypotheses in bird antecedents". PeerJ. 4: e2159. doi:10.7717/peerj.2159. PMC 4941780. PMID 27441115..
- ^ Holtz, Thomas R. Jr. (2011) Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages, Winter 2010 Appendix.
- ^ Chatterjee, S.; Templin, R.J. (2007). "Biplane wing planform and flight performance of the feathered dinosaur Microraptor gui" (PDF). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 104 (5): 1576–1580. Bibcode:2007PNAS..104.1576C. doi:10.1073/pnas.0609975104. PMC 1780066. PMID 17242354.