Tianzhenosaurus
Encyclopedia
Tianzhenosaurus is a genus
of ankylosaurid
dinosaur
discovered in Tianzhen County, at Kangdailiang near Zhaojiagou Village, in Shanxi
Province, China
, in the Late Cretaceous
Huiquanpu Formation
. Thus far, a virtually complete skull and postcranial skeleton have been assigned to the genus, which is monotypic
(T. youngi Pang & Cheng, 1998).
This was a medium-sized ankylosaurian, the skull measuring 28 centimetres (11 in) in length, with a total body length of approximately 4 metres (13.1 ft).
Some authors have suggested that Tianzhenosaurus is actually a junior synonym of Saichania
chulsanensis, but this matter remains unresolved, and Vickaryous et al. (2004) placed it within the Ankylosauridae, nested as the sister group to Pinacosaurus
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of ankylosaurid
Ankylosauridae
An ankylosaurid is a member of the Ankylosauridae family of armored dinosaurs that evolved 125 million years ago and became extinct 65 million years ago during the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event...
dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
discovered in Tianzhen County, at Kangdailiang near Zhaojiagou Village, in Shanxi
Shanxi
' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
Province, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, in the Late Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
Huiquanpu Formation
Huiquanpu Formation
The Huiquanpu Formation is a geological formation in Shanxi and Hebei provinces, China, whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous period.Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Vertebrate paleofauna:* cf...
. Thus far, a virtually complete skull and postcranial skeleton have been assigned to the genus, which is monotypic
Monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term's usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a separate use in conservation biology, monotypic habitat, regarding species habitat conversion eliminating biodiversity and...
(T. youngi Pang & Cheng, 1998).
This was a medium-sized ankylosaurian, the skull measuring 28 centimetres (11 in) in length, with a total body length of approximately 4 metres (13.1 ft).
Some authors have suggested that Tianzhenosaurus is actually a junior synonym of Saichania
Saichania
Saichania is a genus of ankylosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous period. It was found in the Barun Goyot Formation at Khulsan in the Nemegt Basin, southern Mongolia. It lived during the Campanian. The type species is Saichania chulsanensis.Saichania was described by Teresa Maryańska in 1977,...
chulsanensis, but this matter remains unresolved, and Vickaryous et al. (2004) placed it within the Ankylosauridae, nested as the sister group to Pinacosaurus
Pinacosaurus
Pinacosaurus is a genus of medium-sized ankylosaur dinosaurs that lived from the late Santonian to the late Campanian stages of the late Cretaceous Period , in Mongolia and China...
.