50-foot-long dragon-like dinosaur species discovered in China

50-foot-long dragon-like dinosaur species discovered in China

A new, dragon-like dinosaur species named Qijanglong was discovered in China.

Sauropods are a well known category of dinosaur that typically had necks that made up a third of their full length. A new species of dinosaur has been discovered with a neck that could stretch up to 25-feet-long, or half of it’s total length, according to a recently published article in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

The dinosaur is named Qijanglong (pronounced Chi-Jyang-lon), which translates to mean “dragon of Qijang”. The fossils were discovered outside of Qijang City in 2006 by construction workers. The crew was digging and was surprised to find a large neck vertebrae in the ground. Even more surprising was the eventual revelation that the head was still attached to the neck, an unusual occurrence in the field of paleontology.

“It is rare to find a head and neck of a long-necked dinosaur together because the head is so small and easily detached after the animal dies,” explains Tetsuto Miyashita, Ph.D. student at University of Alberta and co-author of the study, in a statement.

Qijanglong was about 15 meters long and belongs to a family of sauropods found only in Asia known as mamenchisaurids. Notably, Qijanglong is the only member of the mamenchisaurids that had neck vertebrae filled with air. This allowed for a lightweight neck that wouldn’t be cumbersome in the case of pursuit by predators. Interlocking joints between the vertebrae allowed for easy vertical motion, though it would have a hard time moving its neck from side to side.

The dragon of Qijang roamed the Earth during the Late Jurassic period, about 160 million years ago. It’s unique neck structure is an excellent example of the breadth of evolutionary adaptations in the period.

“Qijanglong shows that long-necked dinosaurs diversified in unique ways in Asia during Jurassic times — something very special was going on in that continent,” says Miyashita. “Nowhere else we can find dinosaurs with longer necks than those in China. The new dinosaur tells us that these extreme species thrived in isolation from the rest of the world.”

The Qijanglong fossils are currently housed in a local museum in Qijang. Miyashita posits that these ancient creatures might be the source of Chinese dragon mythology.

“China is home to the ancient myths of dragons. I wonder if the ancient Chinese stumbled upon a skeleton of a long-necked dinosaur like Qijanglong and pictured that mythical creature.”

Be social, please share!

Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmail

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *