Anchiornis

dinosaur · four wings · early birds · China

Four amazing wings. Anchiornis had wings on both its front and back legs, making it different from almost all other dinosaurs. This four-wing setup may have helped it move through the air in ways we're still trying to understand.

Perfectly preserved fossils. Scientists found hundreds of Anchiornis fossils in China, and some were so well preserved they could figure out what color it was and how its feathers looked. This made Anchiornis the first Mesozoic dinosaur where we could see almost its entire appearance.

Really, really old. Anchiornis lived about 160 million years ago during the Late Jurassic period, making it one of the dinosaurs closest to the time when birds first began to evolve from dinosaurs.

Found only in China. Every Anchiornis fossil ever discovered came from the Tiaojishan Formation in Liaoning, China, a place that was perfect for preserving these tiny creatures.

Incredibly small. Anchiornis was one of the tiniest dinosaurs, much smaller than many of the giant dinosaurs people usually think of, and closer in size to a modern chicken or pigeon.