Gobipteryx (from Gobi [referring to the Gobi Desert where it was first discovered], and Greek pteryx "wing") is a genus of prehistoric bird from the Campanian Age of the Late Cretaceous Period.[1] It is not known to have any direct descendants.[1] Like the rest of the enantiornithes clade, Gobipteryx is thought to have gone extinct near the end of the Cretaceous.[2]
Based on a skull length of 45 millimeters, Gobipteryx has been estimated to be approximately the size of a partridge.[3] Its bones are fibrolamellar.[4]
The skull's general shape is gradually tapering toward the front.[1] Gobipteryx has a toothless beak[1] formed from the fusion of the premaxillae bones.[5] The skull is characterized as being rhynchokinetic[1] with the pterygoid bones articulating with both the vomers[3][6] and the palatine.[1][3] The nares are tear shaped and the choana is located below them, more rosteral than in most modern birds.[7] The nares are smaller than the antorbital fenestrae, a basal feature for ornithurae birds.[7] In addition, Gobipteryx's skull has an articulated rostrum.[7] The jaw hinge is associated with the articulation of the quadrate with the pterygoid processes.[1] The articular region of the mandible contains internal and retroarticular processes and has uniform symphysis.[1] This animal has a large, uniform, and sutureless braincase.[1]
The vertebral column consists of at least 19 presacral vertebrae, the last six of these being dorsals.[8] The neural spines of the twelfth and thirteenth vertebrae form the nuchal blade, which represents the point of greatest elevation in the vertebral column.[8]
The scapula contains a prominent glenoid labrum and tapers backward, ending as thin rods.[8] The coracoids are slightly concave anteriorly and are separate from the scapulae dorsally. They also stick out from the neck on either side.[8] Gobipteryx's clavicles curve in a way that is consistent with that of other birds.[8]
The humerus is posteriorly convex (a normal trait for birds) and the head is comma-shaped.[8] Gobipteryx's ulna is about twice as thick as the radius.[8] Metacarpals II and III have been found in embryonic fossils and are observed to be about equal size and are in close contact with each other.[8]