When it was first discovered, it was thought to show an integument of hair-like structures. Like Caudipteryx , Protarchaeopteryx is a small non-avian coelurosaur from Beipiao with flightless habits but true preserved feathers. This fossil has generated a lot of controversy. Believed by its discoverer to be a bird, its true identity is not known, and it may even be several different animals. No clear photos of the skin surface were published, and it is not clear whether the outer skin layer had been lost.
More data is needed.
Perhaps the most famous Beipiao feathered dinosaur, this relative of Compsognathus has bristly feathers or proto-feathers similar to, but probably more primitive than, those of Beipiaosaurus . Further analysis is still needed, however. This Beipiao dinosaur is a deinonychosaur, and it too sports a covering of integumentary filaments. However, it has not yet been formally described. However, preparation is not yet complete and not everyone agrees with this assessment.