Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology

The Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP; 中国科学院古脊椎动物与古人类研究所) holds a fossil collection that includes many dinosaur and pterosaur specimens, a large share of them from the Yixian Formation. It is first and foremost a research institution under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and also serves as a paleontological museum and collections repository. As its name indicates, its work covers both ancient vertebrates and human prehistory, which makes it best suited to visitors with an interest in dinosaurs and early humans.

The institute grew out of the Cenozoic Research Laboratory in 1929. Its staff took part in the China-Canada Dinosaur Project from 1986 to 1991 and wrote or co-wrote forty-five articles in Nature and Science between 1999 and 2005. Paleontologists associated with the IVPP include Yang Zhongjian (C. C. Young), Dong Zhiming, Meemann Chang and Zhao Xijin.