Mei — artistic reconstruction

Cretaceous

Mei

Mei long

The catalogue presents Mei as a carnivore member of Troodontidae that lived during the Cretaceous, between 125 Ma. Its estimated range is 0.53 m in length and 0.2 kg in mass, giving a practical sense of scale. Reference material comes from Liaoning, China. Size and mass are approximations and may change with new fossils or methods.

Carnivore125 MaTroodontidae

Evidence-backed summary

For Mei, the PBDB records the taxonomic attribution as Xu and Norell (2004).

The PBDB places it in Sinovenatorinae, and the catalogue record assigns it to the family Troodontidae.

In the PBDB record, the reported stratigraphic range runs from the Barremian to the Aptian.

The PBDB catalogues 2 occurrences, with material from the Yixian Formation (2). Provenance: China.

The catalogue records the holotype as IVPP V12733 and the type locality as “Liaoning, China”.

  • IVPP V12733
  • Liaoning, China

The catalogue's reference measurements are 0.53 m in length and 0.2 kg in mass — estimates, which vary with specimen and method.

  • 0.53 m
  • 0.2 kg

The record gathers 13 bibliographic references registered in the PBDB, listed below.

Records compiled on 2026-08-08

Where it lived

Fossil occurrences on today’s map and in the tectonic reconstruction.

Present-day map2 PBDB
YixianYixian
PBDB occurrences
Map at the time · ~125 Ma2 PBDB
YixianYixian
PBDB occurrences
Present mean latitude41.6° N
Reconstructed mean latitude41.7° N

Positions reconstructed by PBDB/GPlates, not observed; this is not an exact habitat map.

Paleobiology Database · GPlates · CC BY 4.0

Artistic 3D reconstruction

There is no approved species-specific 3D model yet. Generic anatomy will not be presented as if it were evidence.

Physical Specifications

Length
0.53 m
Weight
0.2 kg
Period
Cretaceous
Time range
125 Ma

Discovery Information

First Discovery
2004
Described by
Xu Xing & Mark Norell

Taxonomic Classification

Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Reptilia
Order
Saurischia
Family
Troodontidae
Genus
Mei
Species
M. long

Paleobiology Database · txn:68249

Data status

Taxonomic name matched to PBDB and checked on 2026-08-08.

Taxonomic linkage does not automatically validate size, mass, behaviour or appearance.

Type specimen
IVPP V12733
Type locality
Liaoning, China