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Family
Wukongopteridae
Environment
Tiaojishan Formation
Fossil Locations
Size
47 cm (18 in)
Description
Changchengopterus pani was a wukongipterid described in 2009 on the basis of fossils from the Middle Jurassic Tiaojishan Formation, Hebei Province, China. Only one specimen is currently known, consisting of a partially articulated skeleton missing the skull. The holotype is that of a juvenile with a wingspan just 47 centimeters across. It is currently unknown how large the adults grew, although wukongopterids rarely exceeded one meter wingspans.
Although there is no skull preserved with the specimen, its appearance can be inferred for Changchengopterus by comparison to other wukongopterids. All known wukongopterids had long, narrow skulls, and many had quite large semicircular cranial crests. It may have fed on insects or small vertebrates in the cool ginkgo and conifer forests of Tiaojishan.
Although there is no skull preserved with the specimen, its appearance can be inferred for Changchengopterus by comparison to other wukongopterids. All known wukongopterids had long, narrow skulls, and many had quite large semicircular cranial crests. It may have fed on insects or small vertebrates in the cool ginkgo and conifer forests of Tiaojishan.
