China News Service, Chongqing, April 21 (Liu Xianglin, Wang Binbin, Liu Taixing) A reporter learned from Yunyang County in Chongqing on the 21st that a new species of dinosaur, the Puxian Emei Dragon, was discovered in the Shaximiao Formation of the Chongqing Yunyang dinosaur fauna. Among them, "Pu Xian" is a species name and belongs to the genus Emeilong. This is the discovery of two new species of dinosaurs in the county after the discovery of two new species of the Modaoxi Three Gorges Dragon and Pu'an Yunyang Dragon in the Xintiangou Formation of the Yunyang Dinosaur Fossil Group in Chongqing.
The Emei dragon discovered in this study is a dinosaur individual with a preservation integrity of about 40% unearthed in the Shaximiao Formation in Yunyang in 2017. The fossil specimens found include vertebrae, forelimbs, and hindlimbs preserved in some joints Saved clavicle, ribs and other materials.
The picture shows the restored Emei Dragon. Photo courtesy of the Propaganda Department of Chongqing Yunyang County Committee
After a detailed comparison study by researchers, it was found that the unearthed fossils are clearly different from the 7 species of Emeilong known today, and have their own unique characteristics. For example, all the anterior vertebrae are concave, and the central cervical spine has a complex gas. Cavity structure, the dorsal spine is separated by a secondary partition, the anterior caudal vertebral nerve spine ends are expanded backward, the humeral deltoid crest points to the posterolateral side, and the ratio of ulna to humerus is 0.69.
After the restoration and installation, Puxian Emeilong is an adult large herbivorous dinosaur with a body length of about 16 meters. When standing, its head can reach more than 8 meters above the ground. Tan Chao, a researcher at Chongqing's 208 Address Relics Protection Institute, said that the Emeilong genus is one of the main representative dinosaurs in the Middle Jurassic of China. The expansion of the scope, while enriching a group of Emeilong, is of great significance for studying the evolution and migration of individuals of Emeilong.
It is reported that Chongqing Yunyang Pu'an dinosaur fossil group includes the Xintiangou Formation and Shaxi Temple Formation dinosaur fauna. It belongs to the period from the late Early Jurassic period to the early Middle Jurassic period. Before this period, dinosaur fossils were rarely found in the world. This study of the dinosaur fauna in the Shaximiao Formation may further fill some types of dinosaurs in the Middle Jurassic, and is of great significance for studying the development and evolution of the Middle Jurassic dinosaurs in China. The related papers discovered by Puxian Emeilong were published online in the SCI journal "HistoricalBiology" on April 3.