Zhongjianosaurus
Zhongjianosaurus was one of the tiniest meat-eating dinosaurs that ever lived. It was a fast, feathered hunter from the Early Cretaceous of China, and an adult weighed less than a pet cat!1
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Fun facts
Zhongjianosaurus was a microraptorine, a group of small, feathered dromaeosaurids that could glide.1
The only known fossil is an adult that weighed just 0.31 kilograms, about as much as a hamster.1
Its arm bone (ulna) was slightly longer than its upper arm bone (humerus), which is unusual for a raptor.1
Zhongjianosaurus had a special foot called arctometatarsalian, where the middle foot bone was pinched at the top, making it a fast runner.1
It lived about 121 to 113 million years ago in what is now Liaoning, China, alongside many other feathered dinosaurs.2
Scientists think Zhongjianosaurus and other Jehol dromaeosaurids split up the environment so they didn't compete for the same food.1
Most asked questions about Zhongjianosaurus
?How big was Zhongjianosaurus?
Zhongjianosaurus was tiny, with an adult weighing about 0.31 kg, similar to a hamster. It was one of the smallest known non avian theropods.31
?Could Zhongjianosaurus fly?
It likely could not fly, but it was a microraptorine, a group of small, feathered dromaeosaurids that could glide. Its small size and possible arboreal habits suggest it may have glided between trees.3
?What did Zhongjianosaurus eat?
Scientists think Zhongjianosaurus was possibly omnivorous, eating both plants and small animals. Its small size and possible arboreal lifestyle suggest it may have eaten insects or other small prey.3
?When did Zhongjianosaurus live?
Zhongjianosaurus lived during the Early Cretaceous, about 121 to 113 million years ago, in what is now Liaoning, China. It was part of the Jehol Biota.3
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For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Zhongjianosaurus
- Named by
- Xu and Qin 20174
- Group
- Raptors
- Family / clade
- Dromaeosauridae4
- Classification
- Theropoda > Dromaeosauridae4
- Age of the rocks
- 121 to 113 million years (Aptian)4
- Rock formations
- Jiufotang4
- Countries
- China4
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
- Discovery
- Zhongjianosaurus was named in 2017 by Xu Xing and Qin Zichuan based on a partial skeleton found in the Yixian Formation of Liaoning, China.1
- Still debated
- Scientists are not sure which layer of rock the fossil came from, because the Sihedang site might belong to the Yixian Formation or a different part of the Jehol Group.1
Where the facts come from
- ivpp.cas.cn (ivpp.cas.cn)
- PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
- Zhongjianosaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
- Zhongjianosaurus 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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