Archaeornithura meemannae

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Modern bird: 130 million years

For many years the iconic 150-million-year-old fossil of Archaeopteryx — the contorted skeleton of a small feathered animal with a long tail and claws — was considered to be the first bird, but it really sits between dinosaurs and modern birds.

Today's birds belong to the lineage Ornithuromorpha.

In 2013, scientists discovered two beautifully preserved fossils from this group in China.

The fossil remains were of a previously unknown bird species that lived 130 million years ago.

Named Archaeornithura meemannae, the fossils pushed the earliest known modern bird back by about five million years.