A Mesozoic Pompeii: History of the Jehol Biota's Rise and Fall

Abstract The Jehol fauna was initially represented by a bony fish, concostracan and an insect, as a Lycoptera davidi–Eosestheria–Ephemeropsis trisetalis association, but since the researches of recent decades, the Jehol Biota is now completely different from the past low‐diversity, and encompasses a native terrestrial biota that includes many well‐preserved vertebrates, invertebrates and plants. There are more than 20 important biological categories, thousands of taphonomically unusual fossils, especially noted for the wide variety of biological tissues. The Jehol Biota has caused a sensation in the world with its wide distribution, large quantity, great variety, fine preservation and detailed information, which records the rise and fall of the numerous taxa, and provides significant evidence for three origins: of birds, eutherian mammals, and angiosperms. The Jehol Biota is a highlight of basic scientific research in China, and we honor it as a world–class fossil treasury and “a Mesozoic Pompeii”.