Kelmayisaurus
Kelmayisaurus was a huge meat-eating dinosaur that lived in what is now China during the Early Cretaceous. It had sharp teeth and a powerful jaw to hunt other dinosaurs. Scientists think it was about as long as a school bus!1
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Fun facts
Kelmayisaurus is known from only a partial skull, including a left dentary (lower jaw bone) and part of the upper jaw.1
Its name means 'Karamay lizard' after the city of Karamay in Xinjiang, China, which is famous for petroleum.1
For a long time, scientists thought Kelmayisaurus might be a nomen dubium (a doubtful name) because its fossils were so few. But a 2011 study confirmed it is a valid genus.12
Kelmayisaurus is one of only two carcharodontosaurid dinosaurs known from Asia, showing that these giant predators lived all over the world.2
The only known fossil of Kelmayisaurus was found in the Lianmuqin Formation, which dates to between 140 and 100 million years ago.1
A supposed second species called 'K. gigantus' was mentioned in a book, but it was a mistake and actually refers to a different dinosaur called Klamelisaurus.1
Most asked questions about Kelmayisaurus
?How big was Kelmayisaurus?
It was about 10 to 12 meters (33 to 39 feet) long, roughly as long as a large bus.1
?What did Kelmayisaurus eat?
It was a meat-eater that hunted other dinosaurs, using its sharp teeth and powerful jaw.1
?When did Kelmayisaurus live?
It lived during the Early Cretaceous period, between about 140 and 100 million years ago.1
?Is Kelmayisaurus a dinosaur?
Yes, it is a theropod dinosaur, a type of meat-eating dinosaur.1
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Myth buster
Myth: Some people think Kelmayisaurus was a giant 21-meter-long dinosaur.
Truth: The 21-meter length came from a misidentified fossil that actually belongs to a sauropod called Klamelisaurus. The real Kelmayisaurus was about 10 to 12 meters long.1
For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Kelmayisaurus
- Named by
- Dong 19733
- Group
- Meat-eating dinos
- Family / clade
- Carcharodontosauridae3
- Classification
- Theropoda > Allosauroidea > Carcharodontosauridae3
- Age of the rocks
- 137 to 100 million years (Valanginian / Albian)3
- Rock formations
- Lianmuqin3
- Countries
- China3
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
- Discovery
- Kelmayisaurus was named by Chinese paleontologist Dong Zhiming in 1973 based on a partial skull found near Wuerho in the Junggar Basin of Xinjiang, China.13
- Still debated
- Scientists are not sure exactly how Kelmayisaurus is related to other carcharodontosaurids, because its fossils are so incomplete.1
Where the facts come from
- Kelmayisaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
- A reassessment of Kelmayisaurus petrolicus, a large theropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of China (palaeobiology.web.ox.ac.uk)
- Kelmayisaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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