Shantungosaurus
Shantungosaurus | |
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Restored skeletons | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Clade: | Dinosauria |
Clade: | †Ornithischia |
Clade: | †Ornithopoda |
Family: | †Hadrosauridae |
Subfamily: | †Saurolophinae |
Tribe: | †Edmontosaurini |
Genus: | †Shantungosaurus Hu, 1973 |
Species: | †S. giganteus
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Binomial name | |
†Shantungosaurus giganteus Hu, 1973
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Synonyms | |
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Shantungosaurus (meaning "Shandong Lizard") is a
History of discovery
First described in 1973,
Description
Shantungosaurus giganteus is one of the largest known ornithischians. The type skull is 1.63 metres (5.3 ft) long,[1] and the composite skeleton mounted at the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences in Beijing measures 14.7 metres (48 ft) in length.[6] Another mounted skeleton, originally referred to as Zhuchengosaurus maximus, measures 16.6 metres (54 ft) in length.[4] The largest individuals may have weighed as much as 16 tonnes (18 short tons).[7] In 2012, Butler and Barrett estimated its maximum length up to 17 metres (56 ft).[8] In 2016, Gregory S. Paul suggested that previous studies have overestimated the size of this dinosaur, moderating it at 15 metres (49 ft) in length and 13 metric tons (14 short tons) in body mass, which still makes this dinosaur the largest hadrosaur.[9] Like all hadrosaurs its beak was toothless, but its jaws were packed with around 1,500 tiny chewing teeth. A large hole near its nostrils may have been covered by a loose flap of skin, which could be inflated to make sounds.
Classification
Recent maximum parsimony-based phylogenetic analyses of Hadrosauroidea from Xing and colleagues recovered a stable sister group relationship between Edmontosaurus and Shantungosaurus. Shantungosaurus is the single hadrosaurid from the Zhucheng area that is considered valid. Zhuchengosaurus and Huaxiaosaurus, both of which are known from the same region, have been interpreted by the analyses as junior synonyms of Shantungosaurus. All unequivocal morphological discrepancies among these three taxa could be attributed to intraspecific variation (ontogenetic and polymorphic variation) and post-depositional distortion.[2]
The following cladogram is the result of Prieto-Márquez et al. in 2016. It shows the position of Shantungosaurus as sister group of Edmontosaurus in the Edmontosaurini clade:[10]
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See also
References
- ^ ISBN 7-116-03472-2.
- ^ S2CID 84026961.
- ^ C.-C. Hu. 1973. [A new hadrosaur from the Cretaceous of Chucheng, Shantung]. Acta Geologica Sinica 1973(2):179-206
- ^ S2CID 119700784.
- ISBN 0-89950-917-7.
- ISBN 0-520-24209-2.
- ISBN 978-0253357014.
- OCLC 985402380.
- S2CID 86032549.
Sources
- ISBN 3-540-52084-8.
- Mallam, John (2003). Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs. UK: Parragon Publishing. p. 157.