Fossil of 'oldest-known' bird ancestor unearthed

Researchers have identified the fossil of a two-legged carnivorous dinosaur as the earliest known member of a long lineage that includes birds.

Living 160 million years ago, it was found in orange mudstone beds in the Junggar Basin in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

The "Haplocheirus sollers" had a long, narrow skull, many small teeth and powerful biceps and forelimbs, which enabled it to hunt primitive lizards, small mammals and reptiles.