#cratoavis

(Note: I am not a professional paleontologist or even biologist. I am just and amateur paleoartist and enthusiast. If my infos are off in some way, feel free to correct them ^^)

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DINOCEMBER

11 - Ubirajara jubatus (from Tupi “lord of the spears”) - Early Cretaceous (110 Ma BCE) - Crato Formation, Ceará, Brazil Named at the end of 2020, Ubirajara is one of the most impressive fossils found in Brazilian territory, being a member of the  Compsognathidae, small theropods covered with proto-feathers - or "dino-fuzz" - related to raptors and tyrannosaurs, whose most famous members are China's Sinosauropteryx and Germany's Compsognathus itself. Described from a partial skeleton without the skull, Ubirajara presents impressions of its fuzz, having an apparent "mane" in its dorsal region and pairs of quills on its shoulders, similar to what is found in the current birds-of-paradise, probably used in courtship or to intimidate rivals. The Crato Formation, as well as most of the formations in the Araripe Basin, would be the margins of a large saltwater lagoon, as well as a system of rivers surrounded by gymnosperms and some of the first flowering plants, being rich in fossil extract, especially of pterosaurs, and some curious animals, like the Enantiornithe Cratoavis. Unfortunately, Ubirajara, like other Brazilian fossils, is a target of international fossil trafficking, not having a single native author in the paper that describes it, with the team led by David Martill, a German paleontologist who smugled the Ubirajara fossil to Germany in 1995, and he cannot set foot on Brazilian territory for this and other crimes. Since its description, Ubirajara has been the target of campaigns for its repatriation, as well as other national fossils. I use this drawing as my collaboration for the campaign, and that so that this colonialist and criminal mentality ceases to exist in the paleontological community.

By Jack Wood on @thewoodparable

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Name: Cratoavis cearensis

Name Meaning: Crato Bird

First Described: 2015

Described By: Carvalho et al. 

Classification: Dinosauria, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostylia, Ornithothoraces, Enantiornithes

Cratoavis is a recently described Oposite Bird from the Santana Formation of Brazil, living in the Aptian age of the Early Cretaceous, sometime between 125 and 113 million years ago. It is known from a nearly complete skeleton preserved on a slab, which also preserves some feathering. It was a small animal and probably was a juvenile, though fuzed bones throw that into some question and it’s difficult to exactly determine the age of Cratoavis. It also had a pair of ribbon like feathers extending from the tail like many other Opposite Birds. It had long, gracile hands, and a gracile coracoid, indicating that it had long wings that were perhaps not built for robust flapping like in other birds. However, this gracile state is found elsewhere in the skeleton of Cratoavis and may just be due to its possible juvenile state. 

Source:

Carvalho, I. d. S., F. E. Novas, F. L. Agnolín, M. P. Isasi, F. I. Freitas, J. A. Andrade. 2015. A new genus and species of enantiornithine bird from the Early Cretaceous of Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Geology 45 (2): 161 - 171.