Caudipteridae is an extinct family of oviraptorosaurian dinosaurs known from the Early Cretaceous of China. Found in the Yixian and Jiufotang Formations, the group existed between 125 and 120 million years ago. Distinguishing characteristics of this group have been indicated as including a unique dagger-shaped pygostyle (the bone at the tip of the tail in birds, used to anchor a "fan" of feathers).He, T., Wang, X.-L., and Zhou, Z.-H. (2008). "A new genus and species of caudipterid dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation of western Liaoning, China. The anatomical characteristics Caudipterids were highly uniform for most oviraptorians. of " Vertebrata PalAsiatica, 46(3): 178-189. In 2015, the group was defined as "the most inclusive clade containing Caudipteryx zoui but not Oviraptor philoceratops and Caenagnathus collinsi".
The first caudipterid described was Caudipteryx zoui (named in 1998),Ji, Q., Currie, P.J., Norell, M.A., and Ji, S. (1998). "Two feathered dinosaurs from northeastern China." Nature, 393(6687): 753–761. PDF fulltext though the family itself was not named until the discovery of a second species, Caudipteryx dongi, in 2000.Zhou, Z., and Wang, X. (2000). "A new species of Caudipteryx from the Yixian Formation of Liaoning, northeast China." Vertebrata PalAsiatica, 38(2): 113–130. PDF fulltext Caudipteridae was restricted to the single genus Caudipteryx and was therefore monotypic, containing only a single type and often considered redundant. However, in 2008 Similicaudipteryx yixianensis was described and classified as a caudipterid.
See also
Timeline of oviraptorosaur research
References