‘Large’ prehistoric creature — millions of years old — found in China. See new species
During the late Cretaceous period, between 100 and 66 million years ago, the planet was more hospitable and animals roamed even the farthest polar regions.
Land animals were thriving and dinosaurs were diverse and plentiful.
One of these animals was Qianjiangsaurus changshengi, a massive four-legged reptile with a swinging tail and pointed mouth, according to a study published Aug. 27 in the journal Cretaceous Research.
Paleontologists were scouring a small quarry in southwestern China in 2022 when a partial fossilized skeleton was found among the rocks, according to the study.
When the fossils were excavated, researchers noticed the bones didn’t match anything in the paleontological record, and took a closer look.
Not only is Qianjiangsaurus changshengi a new species, the researchers caught evolution in action.
The dinosaur was identified by a collection of bones, including parts of the lower jaw, vertebrae, sections of the pelvis, and leg and foot bones, according to the study.
The animal was an adult when it died, researchers said, “as indicated by its large size comparable to that of known” related species.
Based on the size of the bones, researchers estimate the animal was around 26 feet long when fully grown.
The species is a ”non-hadrosaurid hadrosauroid,” a species that looks like the well-known hadrosaurids, but has actually diverged genetically and is a transitional species to later known animals.
Researchers said the new species “reveals the transitional morphology from early branching iguanodontians to hadrosaurids” during the Cretaceous period.
“Hadrosauroidea is a diverse, highly specialized clade of ornithischian dinosaurs,” or dinosaurs with pelvic structures more similar to birds than reptiles today, according to the study.
Overall, the dinosaur family, “famous for the duck-billed rostrum,” has been considered one of the most important terrestrial animals of the Cretaceous, researchers said.
Very few hadrosaurid fossils have been discovered in China, according to the study, and this is only the second related species ever described from the southern part of the country.
The quarry was located in the Qianjiang District, outside Chongqing, China.
The research team includes Hui Dai, Qingyu Ma, Can Xiong, Yu Lin, Hui Zeng, Chao Tan, Jun Wang, Yuguang Zhang and Hai Xing.
This story was originally published August 29, 2024 at 4:03 PM with the headline "‘Large’ prehistoric creature — millions of years old — found in China. See new species."
