Pronunciation: SAY-ree-KOR-niss
Meaning: Silk bird
Author/s: Lefèvre et al. (2017)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Liaoning Province, China
Discovery Chart Position: #964
Serikornis sungei
[Sun Ge's silk bird]Etymology
Serikornis is derived from the Greek "serikos"
(silk) and "ornis" (bird), because its body is almost
entirely covered with downy (plumulaceous) feathers just like a modern breed of domestic chickens known as "silkies". The species epithet, sungei, honours Chinese palaeontologist Sun Ge—curator of the Paleontological Museum of Liaoning—"for his contribution to our knowledge of Jurassic and Cretaceous ecosystems
in Asia".
Discovery
The remains of Serikornis were discovered in the Tiaojishan Formation at Daxishan
village, Linglongta, Jianchang County, Liaoning Province, China.
The holotype (PMOL-AB00200) is the articulated skeleton
of a sub-adult individual, around 50cm in length, with associated feathery structures preserved on a slab.
The counterpart is missing, but most of the skeleton is preserved on the main slab, including the skull which is mainly shattered. The holotypes of Xiaotingia zhengi, Anchiornis huxleyi, and perhaps Aurornis xui (which may be synonymous with the latter) were found in the same area.
