This news article is based on the journal article (Zhou et al., 2026) from Annals of Carnegie Museum and the Field Museum News Release.

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Introduction

A newly discovered feathered dinosaur from northwestern China is helping solve a strange fossil mystery. The new species, named Jian changmaensis, comes from the Lower Cretaceous Xiagou Formation of the Changma Basin in Gansu Province. This fossil site is famous for producing more than 100 prehistoric bird skeletons, many belonging to the early bird Gansus yumenensis. Until now, however, no body fossil of a non-avian dinosaur had been described from the site.

The new fossil consists of an articulated left shoulder and forelimb, including the scapulocoracoid, humerus, radius, and ulna. Although only part of the animal is preserved, the bones show that it belonged to Microraptorinae, a group of small feathered dromaeosaurid dinosaurs related to Velociraptor. These animals were close relatives of birds and were often covered in long feathers.

The discovery is especially interesting because the Changma fossil beds contain clusters of broken bird bones. These clusters resemble pellets coughed up by modern owls and other predators. For years, scientists suspected that some larger carnivorous animal may have been feeding on the birds, but direct fossil evidence of that predator was missing. Jian changmaensis may be the best candidate yet.

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A Four-Winged Cousin of Velociraptor

Jian changmaensis belonged to the dromaeosaur family, the same broader group that includes famous raptor-like dinosaurs such as Velociraptor. Unlike the oversized movie versions of raptors, many real dromaeosaurs were small, feathered, bird-like predators. Microraptors were especially bird-like, with long feathers not only on their arms, but also on their legs.

Although the fossil of Jian does not preserve feathers, its close relationship to other microraptors suggests that it probably had long feathers on both its forelimbs and hind limbs. This would have given it a four-winged appearance. Like other microraptors, it may not have been capable of strong powered flight, but it may have been able to glide from tree to tree, somewhat like a flying squirrel.

Researchers estimate that Jian may have had a wingspan of around four feet, making it one of the larger microraptor specimens known. Its size, carnivorous habits, and presence in a fossil bed dominated by early birds make it an important clue to the ecology of the Changma Basin.

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The Mystery of the Bird Bone Pellets

The Changma Basin has produced hundreds of early bird fossils, including beautifully preserved remains with traces of soft tissues such as feathers and skin. Some of the most unusual fossils from the site are compact clusters of broken bird bones. These clusters have been compared to owl pellets because modern owls and other predatory birds often cough up compact masses of indigestible bones and feathers after feeding.

Before the discovery of Jian, scientists did not have a strong candidate for the animal that may have produced these ancient bird-bone pellets. The new dinosaur is the only non-avian dinosaur body fossil described from the site so far, and it was a carnivore larger than the birds found around it. Because of this, researchers suggest that Jian changmaensis may have been the predator responsible for at least some of the broken bird remains.

The researchers believe Jian changmaensis likely:

• Belonged to the feathered raptor family Dromaeosauridae.
• Was part of the microraptor group of small, bird-like theropods.
• Probably had long feathers on both its arms and legs.
• May have glided rather than flown with strong, powered wingbeats.
• May have hunted early birds such as Gansus yumenensis.
• Could help explain the mysterious pellets of broken bird bones found at Changma.

This interpretation is still a hypothesis, but it fits the fossil evidence now known from the site. Jian was a carnivorous, feathered dinosaur living in an ecosystem packed with early birds, and it is currently the best direct evidence of a non-avian dinosaur predator from the Changma fossil beds.

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Why This Discovery is Important

The discovery of Jian changmaensis is important because it is the first non-avian dinosaur body fossil described from the bird-bearing Xiagou Formation of the Changma Basin. The site had already produced many important early bird fossils, but the discovery of a microraptor adds a new predator to the ecosystem.

The fossil also expands the known range of microraptors. Most unquestioned Early Cretaceous microraptor fossils come from the famous Jehol Group of northeastern China. Jian shows that these feathered raptor-like dinosaurs also lived much farther west in northwestern China during the Early Cretaceous.

The Changma Basin and parts of the Jehol Group both preserve rich Early Cretaceous bird faunas. The presence of microraptorines in both regions suggests that these ecosystems may have shared similar environments and predator-prey relationships. In both places, bird-like dinosaurs and early birds lived side by side.

The name Jian changmaensis reflects both the dinosaur's bird-like appearance and its place of discovery. "Jian" refers to a winged creature from Chinese mythology, while "changmaensis" honors the Changma Basin where the fossil was found. As more fossils are discovered, scientists may learn whether this four-winged predator truly was the animal behind the mysterious bird-bone pellets.

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Journal Article:

Zhou, L.-Q., Lamanna, M. C., Poust, A. W., Li, D.-Q., You, H.-L., & O'Connor, J. K. (2026). First non-avian theropod (Dromaeosauridae, Microraptorinae) from the bird-bearing Lower Cretaceous Xiagou Formation of the Changma Basin, Gansu Province, northwestern China. Annals of Carnegie Museum, 92(2), 89–110. Published 4 June 2026. View PDF.

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