Fossil characteristics of Confucius Birds

Confuciusornis, which dates back about 125 million years ago, is one of the earliest birds known to have a horny beak in the world. It also retains a complete double-arch skull structure unique to its reptilian ancestors. This primitive Its characteristics and retained three finger claws are very similar to those of Archaeopteryx and dinosaur ancestors. It is also one of the best-preserved and most numerous fossil birds in the world. The results were published in the British magazine "Nature" on October 19, 1995.

Restoration of Confucius Bird

Fossil of Confucius Bird

By chance in 1993, my late colleague Hu Yaoming and I saw the first specimen of Confucius Birds at the home of a fossil collector. Frankly speaking, at the time I was not yet sure how valuable this discovery was. Its unusual wing claws reminded me of Archaeopteryx. Thousands of Confuciusornis fossils discovered subsequently are more complete than this first one. What makes me feel gratified is that our conclusion that Confuciusornis has no teeth at all but has a horny beak has been tested again and again.

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