Microraptor gui was a dromaeosaurid theropod from the Lower Cretaceous of the Jiufotang Formation, Liaoning China. Several fossils of this animal show impressions of true asymmetrical feathers in forelimbs and hind limbs. A cast of the holotype from the Institute of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Palaeoanthropology (IVPP), Beijing, China, was presented in the Museu Nacional and was one of the main attractions of the II Latin American Congress of Vertebrate Paleontology (Rio de Janeiro - August, 2005) together with the reconstruction of the animal presented here.
This model took three weeks to be constructed (it was a hard work!) using iron (claws and teeth), polyurethane, epoxy resin and feathers of grey heron, atoba (Sula) and chicken. I received support for several specialists: Dr. Marcos Raposo (Laboratory of Ornithology, Vertebrate Department, Museu Nacional) provided the feathers of the heron and the atoba and the taxidermists Daniela de Farias e Silva (Faculdades Integradas Teresa D'Ávila Lorena, São Paulo, Brazil) and Carlos Augusto Caetano (Department of Taxidermy, Museu Nacional) prepared the feathers for use.
