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Lingwulong

Say it: ling-WOO-long

Name means: “Lingwu dragon, amazing”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksMiddle Jurassic

Lingwulong was a long-necked plant-eater that lived about 174 million years ago. It was one of the earliest diplodocoid sauropods ever found, and the first one discovered in East Asia. Its fossils were a big surprise to scientists!2 1

Lived

175 to 162 million years ago4

Middle Jurassic

Fossils found in

Lingwu Geopark, near Ciyaopu, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China4 2

Food

Plants4

Length

12 to 14 m3

Weight

10 tonnes to 11 tonnes3

estimate based on relatives of similar size

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 7 cars

as long as 3 cars parked in a rowas long as 78 bananas end to endas heavy as 2 elephantsas heavy as 2200 watermelons

How big was Lingwulong compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

cool stuff

Fun facts

Lingwulong is the earliest known diplodocoid sauropod, living about 174 million years ago in the Middle Jurassic.2

It is the only definite diplodocoid dinosaur ever found in East Asia, challenging the idea that this group never lived there.1

The fossils include 7 to 10 partial skeletons, from juveniles to adults, including parts of two skulls.2

Its name means 'amazing dragon from Lingwu' because finding a dicraeosaurid in China was so unexpected.1

Lingwulong belonged to Dicraeosauridae, a group of sauropods with shorter necks and spines on their vertebrae.2

Its discovery suggests that many advanced sauropod groups spread across the world while the supercontinent Pangaea was still together.2

AI-made picture of Lingwulong — An AI-made picture of how Lingwulong might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Lingwulong

?How big was Lingwulong?

Scientists have not given a specific length or weight for Lingwulong in the sources, so its exact size is not known. It was a diplodocoid sauropod, and many of its relatives were large, but no exact numbers are available.1 2

?What did Lingwulong eat?

Lingwulong was a plant-eater. As a sauropod dinosaur, it ate plants.2

?When did Lingwulong live?

Lingwulong lived about 174 million years ago, during the Middle Jurassic period.1 2

?Where was Lingwulong found?

Lingwulong fossils were found in Lingwu, Ningxia, China. The discovery was made in the Yanan Formation.1 2

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Lingwulong
Named by: Xu et al. 20184
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Flagellicaudata4
Classification: Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda > Diplodocoidea4
Age of the rocks: 175 to 162 million years (Aalenian / Callovian)4
Countries: China4
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
Discovery: Lingwulong was named in 2018 by Xu Xing and colleagues based on fossils found from 2005 onward in the Yanan Formation of China.2 1
Still debated: Scientists are still debating whether the absence of neosauropods in the Late Jurassic of East Asia is due to real extinction or just poor fossil sampling.2

Where the facts come from

Lingwulong (en.wikipedia.org)
A new Middle Jurassic diplodocoid suggests an earlier dispersal and diversification of sauropod dinosaurs | Nature Communications (preview-www.nature.com)
Brontosaurus Relatives Unearthed in East Asia for the First Time - AIP.ORG (aip.org)
Lingwulong in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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