Knowra Feathered dinosaur Feathered dinosaur A dinosaur bearing feathers or feather-like coverings, from simple filaments to complex flight feathers. The group includes non-avian dinosaurs and living birds.
Dinosaur : A member of Dinosauria, the group of reptiles that includes birds and their extinct relatives. Feathered dinosaurs are a subset of Dinosauria, not a separate major branch.
Feather anatomy : The structural parts of a feather, including its shaft, barbs, and barbules. These parts distinguish simple feather forms from aerodynamic vanes.
Sinosauropteryx : An Early Cretaceous theropod dinosaur known from fossils preserving filamentous body coverings. Its fossils provided early, clear evidence of feather-like coverings outside birds.
Feather evolution : The evolutionary history of feathers, from simple filaments to complex structures. Feathered dinosaurs document stages in the diversification of feather forms.
Origin of birds : The evolutionary transition by which birds arose from theropod dinosaurs. Feathered fossils document forms near the transition from non-avian dinosaurs to birds.
Feather : A keratinous integumentary structure characteristic of birds and present in several non-avian dinosaur groups. Feather structure ranges from simple filaments to the branching forms seen in birds.
Pennaceous feather : A feather with a flattened vane formed by interlocking barbs. Its broad surface could support display, insulation, or aerodynamic use.
Microraptor : A small dromaeosaurid dinosaur with long feathers on its arms and legs. Its four feathered limbs illustrate a distinctive non-avian body plan.
Paraves : A theropod group that includes birds, dromaeosaurids, and troodontids. Many well-known feathered dinosaurs lie close to birds within this group.
Dinosaur coloration : The colors and patterns of dinosaurs, inferred from fossils and biological comparisons. Preserved pigments in feathers make some dinosaur colors unusually accessible.
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