Caihong

Caihong () is an extinct dinobird from Late Jurassic China. "Caihong" was discovered in 2014. The animal may predate the famous "Aurornis xui", the earliest bird, by about 1 million years.
The type species, Caihong juji, was named in 2018.
Description.
Size.
"Caihong" was a rather small dinosaur. Its length was estimated at , and its weight at .
Skeleton.
The skull of "Caihong" has a length of 67.6 millimetres. It is low and elongated (superficially similar to that of "Velociraptor)", only slightly shorter than the femur.
Vertebrae.
"Caihong" probably has ten neck vertebrae, thirteen back vertebrae, five sacral vertebrae and twenty-sic tail vertebrae.
Feathering and coloration.
The fossilized feathers of "Caihong" showed similarity to a black iridescent color in extant birds. Other feathers found on the head, chest, and the base of the tail preserve flattened sheets of platelet-like melanosomes.
"Caihong" represents the oldest known evidence of platelet-like melanosomes.