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Sinotyrannus

Say it: SYE-no-tye-RAN-us

Name means: “Chinese tyrant”1

Ate: MeatTyrannosaursEarly Cretaceous

Sinotyrannus was a big, meat-eating dinosaur that lived in what is now China. It was one of the earliest giant tyrannosaurs, as long as a school bus! It hunted other dinosaurs in ancient forests near lakes.1

Lived

121 to 113 million years ago3

Early Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Liaoning Province, China1 2

Food

Meat1 2

Length

9 to 10 m1

Weight

2.5 tonnes1

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 1.5 cars

as long as 2 cars parked in a rowas long as 56 bananas end to endas heavy as 83 big dogsas heavy as 500 watermelons

How big was Sinotyrannus compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Sinotyrannus lived about 122 to 120 million years ago, during the Early Cretaceous period.1

It was one of the biggest early tyrannosaurs, reaching up to 10 metres (33 feet) long and weighing about 2.5 metric tons (2.8 short tons).1

Scientists think Sinotyrannus may have had a simple feathery coat, like many early tyrannosaurs.1

Sinotyrannus lived alongside many other animals, including the small feathered dinosaur Microraptor.1

Its skull had a large, oval nostril, and its upper jaw had a unusual concave (curved inward) top edge.1

The only known fossil of Sinotyrannus is a partial skeleton that includes part of the skull, some back bones, and hip bones.1

AI-made picture of Sinotyrannus — An AI-made picture of how Sinotyrannus 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 Sinotyrannus

?How big was Sinotyrannus?

Sinotyrannus was about 9 to 10 metres (30 to 33 feet) long and weighed around 2.5 metric tons (2.8 short tons). That is about as long as a school bus.1

?Was Sinotyrannus a dinosaur?

Yes, Sinotyrannus was a theropod dinosaur, specifically a large tyrannosauroid. It is not a modern bird or a marine reptile.1

?What did Sinotyrannus eat?

Sinotyrannus was likely an active predator, as has been speculated for most tyrannosaurs. It probably hunted other dinosaurs in its environment.1

?Did Sinotyrannus have feathers?

Scientists think Sinotyrannus may have had a simple feathery coat, like many early tyrannosaurs. This is based on its close relatives, but no direct feather fossils are known.1

?When did Sinotyrannus live?

Sinotyrannus lived about 122 to 120 million years ago, during the Early Cretaceous period. That is a long time before T. rex appeared.1

?Was Sinotyrannus bigger than T. rex?

No, Sinotyrannus was smaller than T. rex. Sinotyrannus reached about 10 metres (33 feet) long, while T. rex could be over 12 metres (40 feet) long.1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Sinotyrannus
Named by: Ji et al. 20093
Group: Tyrannosaurs
Family / clade: Proceratosauridae3
Classification: Theropoda > Tyrannosauroidea3
Age of the rocks: 121 to 113 million years (Aptian)3
Rock formations: Jiufotang3
Countries: China3
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: Sinotyrannus was named in 2009 by Ji and colleagues based on a partial skeleton found in the Jiufotang Formation of Liaoning, China. The type specimen is called KZV-001.1 2
Still debated: Scientists debate whether Sinotyrannus is actually the same dinosaur as Huaxiagnathus, a smaller dinosaur known from younger fossils. If so, Sinotyrannus might be a junior synonym of Huaxiagnathus.1

Where the facts come from

Sinotyrannus (en.wikipedia.org)
PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
Sinotyrannus 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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