Omnisaura

Dinosaur genus

Archaeopteryx

Meyer 1861

Archaeopteryx is a dinosaur genus known from bones, found in rocks 149.2–143.1 million years old, in Germany.

Also calledzh 始祖鳥
mediummedium: Only Wikidata gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Confidence labels
How sure are we?5 high6 medium2 lowHow we rate confidence

Confidence labels are switched off. Facts with low confidence, or where sources disagree, still carry a small dot: tap it for the reason.

At a glance

Data as of 5 October 2026
149.2–143.1 Ma
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
252 million years ago20114366

Solid: the ages of its dated fossils, 149.2–143.1 million years ago (Omnisaura's calculation). Pale: the published range, 149.2–121.4 million years ago, which also counts records Omnisaura leaves out.

The last non-bird dinosaurs died out 66 million years ago. That's as far from us as the end of this bar.

Named by
Meyer 1861
highhigh: PBDB and Wikidata agree.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.

Described in
H. v. Meyer (1861). [Die Feder von Solenhofen] [The feather of Solnhofen]. Neues Jahrbuch für Mineralogie, Geognosie, Geologie und Petrefakten-Kunde 1861: 678–679.
highhigh: PBDB gives this publication for the name; its author and year match the naming authority (Meyer 1861), on which PBDB and Wikidata agree.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. The publication the Paleobiology Database gives as the authority for this genus name, usually the one that first named and described it.

Lived
Tithonian to Barremian, 149.2–121.4 million years ago
highhigh: PBDB and NHM agree.
Omnisaura calculation149.2–143.1 million years ago, from its dated fossil records
mediummedium: Omnisaura's calculation from 8 confirmed PBDB records.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.

Fossils found in
Germany
highhigh: NHM and PBDB both record it.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database; Natural History Museum Data Portal. How it was chosen: Union of all sources (ISO 3166).

Rock formations
Solnhofen Formation
highhigh: NHM and PBDB both record it.
Altmühltal
mediummedium: Only PBDB records it (4 records).
Mörnsheim
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Painten
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
mixedmixed: Levels differ between entries; each has its own.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database; Natural History Museum Data Portal. How it was chosen: Canonical names, automatic and editor-approved matches applied.

Parent group
Avialae
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.

Species named in its records
Archaeopteryx albersdoerferi, Archaeopteryx lithographica, Archaeopteryx siemensii
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database (the species its fossil records are identified as).

Diet
piscivore, insectivore (inferred for its group)
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB, inferred from a group the genus belongs to.

Way of life
volant (inferred for its group)
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB, inferred from a group the genus belongs to.

Known from
Bones
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database (what the name was based on).

Sources: Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0), Natural History Museum Data Portal (CC0 1.0), Wikidata (CC0 1.0)Confidence levels and gaps are Omnisaura's own assessment.

Gaps are answers

What isn't known yet

  • Type species: no source we use gives it yet.
  • Order: no source we use gives it yet.
  • Family: no source we use gives it yet.
  • What it was named after: no source we use gives it yet.
  • Held back: 1 fossil record left out: identified only tentatively (for example "cf.", "?" or the name in quotation marks).
  • Held back: 1 fossil record left out: identified as a related genus rather than this one.
  • Resting on one source: 4 facts come from a single source with nothing against them (rated medium): parent group (PBDB); common names (Wikidata); diet (PBDB); way of life (PBDB).

Size and appearance aren't covered yet, and diet and way of life only as PBDB infers them for the wider group. Omnisaura leaves the rest out rather than guess.

Where sources disagree

None open. Where our sources overlap, they agree on everything shown here.

Did it meet…?

?

No. Archaeopteryx had gone at least 59.5 million years before Tyrannosaurus appears in the fossil record.

Going by the ages and rock formations of their dated fossils, as on the map. Compare their fossil sites on the map.

Connections

Genera linked to Archaeopteryx by where and when their fossils were found, by classification and by who named them. Select a name to open its page.

ArchaeopteryxSame naming authorCalorckosauripusPlateosaurus

Named by Meyer 2

Genera whose naming authority includes the same surname. The authority has no initials, so different people who share a surname can appear together.

CalorckosauripusPlateosaurus

Credits

Where this page comes from

  • Paleobiology DatabaseCC BY 4.0 · fossil records, ages, classification
  • Natural History Museum Data PortalCC0 1.0 · catalogued specimens
  • WikidataCC0 1.0 · names and identifiers
  • OmnisauraOmnisaura editorial · confidence levels and gaps
  • PaleoMAP PaleoCoastlines (Kocsis and Scotese 2021)CC BY 4.0 · ancient coastlines on the small map
  • Natural EarthPublic domain · today's coastlines

Pictures linked from this page are credited beside each one, with their own licences; the full list is in the JSON download.