feathered dinosaur: Quick Facts

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The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

Oct. 22, 2026

Photos and Videos

Illustration of Caudipteryx, an extinct feathered dinosaur, showing a small, birdlike creature with a beaked face, feathered body, short arms with wing-like feathers, and a fan of tail feathers.

Archaeopteryx skeleton

Illustration of Confuciusornis sanctus, an extinct genus of early bird, showing a feathered body, long tail feathers, and outstretched wings with clawed fingers.

Dr. Jingmai O'Connor smiles and gestures toward a fossil of Archaeopteryx on display at the Field Museum, with exhibit text visible in the background.

Side-by-side illustration comparing a modern black-and-white bird on the left with a feathered dinosaur, Archaeopteryx, on the right, both with wings spread.

Learn about the feathered dinosaurs of the Middle Jurassic Epoch

Silhouette of a bird with outstretched wings holding a Hello, my name is ? badge, next to a set of four large, weathered bones on a dark background.

The video thumbnail image shows an illustration of the bird dinosaur Longipteryx alongside two toy dinosaur figurines.

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Topics

Protarchaeopteryx Xiaotingia Microraptor Archaeopteryx Did Dinosaurs Really Have Feathers?Confuciusornis Caudipteryx How Do We Know That Dinosaurs May Have Had Feathers?Ornithomimus Struthiomimus pterosaur ichthyosaur Titanoboa sauropterygian ornithischian mosasaur Marasuchus phytosaur Euparkeria Mesosaurus

Young chimpanzee dressed in a shirt and sweater vest, scratching his head thinking. (primates)

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Lion (panthera leo)

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Mute swan with cygnet. (birds)

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The bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) is seen in Switzerland on December 2024

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Sea otter (Enhydra lutris), also called great sea otter, rare, completely marine otter of the northern Pacific, usually found in kelp beds. Floats on back. Looks like sea otter laughing. saltwater otters

Animal Group Names