''Cuspirostrisornis'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

enantiornithean The Enantiornithes, also known as enantiornithines or enantiornitheans in literature, are a group of extinct avialans ("birds" in the broad sense), the most abundant and diverse group known from the Mesozoic era. Almost all retained teeth and cl ...

bird. Only one species is known, ''Cuspirostrisornis houi'', though some researchers believe this to be a synonym of the similar species ''

Cathayornis yandica ''Cathayornis'' is a genus of enantiornithean birds from the Jiufotang Formation of Liaoning, People's Republic of China. It is known definitively from only one species, ''Cathayornis yandica'', one of the first Enantiornithes found in China. Se ...

''.Zhou Z. and Wang Y. (2010). "Vertebrate diversity of the Jehol Biota as compared with other lagerstätten." ''Science China: Earth Sciences'', 53(12): 1894–1907.

It is known from one

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...

found in the

Jiufotang Formation The Jiufotang Formation () is an Early Cretaceous geological formation in Chaoyang, Liaoning which has yielded fossils of feathered dinosaurs, primitive birds, pterosaurs, and other organisms (see Jehol Biota). It is a member of the Jehol group. T ...

Liaoning ) , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = Clockwise: Mukden Palace in Shenyang, Xinghai Square in Dalian, Dalian coast, Yalu River at Dandong , image_map = Liaoning in China (+all claims hatched).svg , ...

province,

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. The

is dated to the

Early Cretaceous The Early Cretaceous (geochronology, geochronological name) or the Lower Cretaceous (chronostratigraphy, chronostratigraphic name) is the earlier or lower of the two major divisions of the Cretaceous. It is usually considered to stretch from 143.1 ...

period,

Aptian The Aptian is an age (geology), age in the geologic timescale or a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is a subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early or Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or series (stratigraphy), S ...

age, 120.3 +/-0.7 million years ago.He, H.Y., Wang, X.L., Zhou, Z.H., Wang, F., Boven, A., Shi, G.H., Zhu R.X. (2004). "Timing of the Jiufotang Formation (Jehol Group) in Liaoning, northeastern China, and its implications". ''Geophysical Research Letters'' 31(13): 1709. ''C. houi'' is known from a nearly complete fossil. The

holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...

fossil is in the collection of the

Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology The Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP; ) of People's Republic of China, China is a research institution and collections repository for fossils, including many dinosaur and pterosaur specimens (many from the Yixian For ...

in Beijing, China. The fossil is given catalog number IVPP V 10897. It was collected in 1993 by Dr. Hou Lianhai and Hou Jinfeng, the illustrator at IVPP. It was collected from light gray mudstones approximately two kilometers west of Boluochi Village, Chaoyang County, Liaoning Province.Hou, Lianhai (1997)
Mesozoic Birds of China
Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Beijing, China. Published by the Phoenix Valley Provincial Aviary of Taiwan. In Chinese, translated by Will Downs, Bilby Research Center, Northern Arizona University, January, 2001. The holotype fossil is that of a small perching bird, with a skull about 27 millimeters (1 inch) long. There are five pairs of tiny teeth in the

premaxilla The premaxilla (or praemaxilla) is one of a pair of small cranial bones at the very tip of the upper jaw of many animals, usually, but not always, bearing teeth. In humans, they are fused with the maxilla. The "premaxilla" of therian mammals h ...

, and another five pairs in the anterior

dentary In jawed vertebrates, the mandible (from the Latin ''mandibula'', 'for chewing'), lower jaw, or jawbone is a bone that makes up the lowerand typically more mobilecomponent of the mouth (the upper jaw being known as the maxilla). The jawbone ...

. It had a pointed snout which Hou identified as a beak proportionally similar to the beaks of the extant

'' Motacilla'', the wagtails. However, some have noted that there is no evidence that the snouts of tooth-bearing prehistoric birds such as most enantiornitheans would also have possessed a horny beak, at least in a toothed part of the snout. As ''Cuspirostrisornis'' had a toothed snout, the beak which Hou presumed was present in the genus is likely a misinterpretation, similar to the hooked beak which was erroneously stated to be present in '' Boluochia'', one of many other enantiornitheans described in the same paper. The ulna is large and derived, with the s-shape of modern flying birds. The sternum is large,

carinate Carinate is a shape in pottery, glassware and artistic design usually applied to amphorae or vases. The shape is defined by the joining of a rounded base to the sides of an inward sloping vessel. This design is seen in ancient cultures such as ...

, and broad.

Etymology

The generic name comes from the Latin words for "pointed" and "beak", and the

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

refers to its describer, Mr. Hou Jinfeng, who is mentioned above.

References

Avisauridae Bird genera Early Cretaceous birds of Asia Fossil taxa described in 1997 Jiufotang fauna {{paleo-bird-stub