Dino card No. 1998 of 2,027

Yuzhoulong

Say it: yoo-ZHOO-long

Name means: “Yuzhou dragon, after Yuzhou, an ancient name for Chongqing in China”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksMiddle Jurassic

Yuzhoulong was a huge, long-necked plant eater that lived in the Middle Jurassic. It is one of the earliest known members of the group that includes giants like Brachiosaurus. Scientists found its bones in China.2 1

Lived

168 to 162 million years ago4

Middle Jurassic

Fossils found in

Laojun Village, Pu'an Town, Yunyang County, Chongqing Municipality, China2 1

Food

Plants4

Length

11 to 12 m3

estimate for sub-mature holotype; adult may have been larger

Height

5 m3

shoulder height estimate

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How tall was it?

shoulder height estimate

as long as 2.5 cars parked in a rowas long as 67 bananas end to endas tall as 2.5 doors stacked up

How big was Yuzhoulong compared to YOU?

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

cool stuff

Fun facts

Yuzhoulong is one of the earliest known macronarians, the group that later included giants like Brachiosaurus and Giraffatitan.2

Its bones were found mixed with those of another, unnamed sauropod, making the dig site extra exciting.1

The fossil skeleton is from a young, not fully grown individual, so scientists think adults might have been even bigger.2 1

Yuzhoulong had a unique feature: two extra holes on the back part of some of its back bones, which no other sauropod has.2

The name 'Yuzhou' comes from the ancient name of Chongqing, and 'long' means dragon in Chinese.1

It lived about 166 million years ago, during the Middle Jurassic, in what is now the Sichuan Basin in China.2

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

?What did Yuzhoulong eat?

It ate plants, because it was a sauropod, and all sauropods were plant-eaters.1

?How big was Yuzhoulong?

No one knows for sure, because the only skeleton found is from a young, not fully grown individual, so adults might have been bigger.1 2

?When did Yuzhoulong live?

It lived about 166 million years ago, during the Middle Jurassic.1 2

Ask Rex about Yuzhoulong

Rex only answers questions about this page. 3 questions a day.

Rex is an AI and can make mistakes. He runs on servers in the EU and questions are never saved. Never type your name or other personal things.

For dino experts

Scientific name: Yuzhoulong
Named by: Dai et al. 20224
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Macronaria4
Classification: Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda > Macronaria4
Age of the rocks: 168 to 162 million years (Bathonian / Callovian)4
Rock formations: Shaximiao4
Countries: China4
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
Discovery: In 2016, a new quarry was found in Pu'an Town, Chongqing, China. The skeleton was dug out and named Yuzhoulong qurenensis by Dai and colleagues in 2022.1 2
Still debated: Scientists are still debating exactly how old the rock layer is where Yuzhoulong was found, and some think it might be slightly younger than others.2

Where the facts come from

Yuzhoulong (en.wikipedia.org)
royalsocietypublishing.org (royalsocietypublishing.org)
Yuzhoulong — Grokipedia (grokipedia.com)
Yuzhoulong 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.

Rex is hungry! Dino Wiki is a dad's project for his dino-loving son, free with no ads. Grown-ups can feed Rex a snack to help keep it online.Feed Rex