The LSF data collected was used to produce and describe the quantitative outlines of portions of the fossil paravian body. Anchiornis is also represented by 229+ specimens 10, which greatly improves the chance of discovering rare soft tissue preservation with minimal taphonomic damage. As the earliest four-winged paravian with long tibial and metatarsal feathers, Anchiornis shares a key feature with gliding-capable Microraptor 3, 5, 9. Anchiornis is especially suited for this study because its contribution to understanding avian and flight origins has not been fully realized. In this study, LSF imaging is performed on the four-winged dinosaur Anchiornis 2, 3, one of a few key basal paravian theropods-including Microraptor and Archaeopteryx-whose osteology, feathering and aerodynamics have made profound contributions to the understanding of avian origins and early flight evolution 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. Laser-stimulated fluorescence (LSF) imaging can broaden the scope of data available from fossils by revealing morphological details that are otherwise invisible under white or ultraviolet light conditions 1. The number of seemingly modern propatagial traits hint that feathering was a significant factor in how basal paravians utilized arm, leg and tail function for aerodynamic benefit. The body outline and soft tissue details suggest significant functional decoupling between the legs and tail in at least some basal paravians. Finely preserved details also reveal similarities in propatagial and footpad form between basal paravians and modern birds, extending their record to the Late Jurassic. This body outline confirms patagia-bearing arms, drumstick-shaped legs and a slender tail, features that were probably widespread among paravians. Here we reconstruct the quantitative body outline of a fossil paravian Anchiornis based on high-definition images of soft tissues revealed by laser-stimulated fluorescence. Due to the absence of fossilized soft tissue evidence, the functional consequences of basal paravian body shape and its implications for the origins of avians and flight are not yet fully understood. Body shape is a fundamental expression of organismal biology, but its quantitative reconstruction in fossil vertebrates is rare.
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