Chiayusaurus

Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Chiayusaurus
Temporal range: Early Cretaceous,
Barremian–Aptian
PreꞒ
O
S
D
C
P
T
J
K
Pg
N
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Sauropodomorpha
Clade: Sauropoda
Clade: Macronaria
Family: Euhelopodidae
Genus: Chiayusaurus
Bohlin, 1953
Species:
C. lacustris
Binomial name
Chiayusaurus lacustris
Bohlin, 1953
Other species
  • Chiayusaurus asianensis? Lee, Yang & Park, 1997
Synonyms
  • Chiayüsaurus Bohlin, 1953
  • Chiayuesaurus Bohlin, 1953

Chiayusaurus (meaning "Chia-yu-kuan lizard", after where it was found) is a genus of sauropod dinosaur known from teeth found in China and possibly also South Korea. Two species have been named for this obscure genus, though only the type, C. lacustris, is still seen as valid. It was originally named as Chiayüsaurus, but the ICZN does not permit special characters, so the name was corrected to Chiayusaurus. The obsolete name can still be seen in older sources, though. As a sauropod, Chiayusaurus would have been a large, quadrupedal herbivore.[1]

History and taxonomy

Birger Bohlin based Chiayusaurus on a tooth crown in the IVPP. This tooth was found in the Barremian-age (Early Cretaceous) Xinminbao Group of Gansu, China. This spatulate tooth crown was 27 millimeters (1.1 inches) long, and was not similar to the younger genus Asiatosaurus.[2] As it was based on such sparse material, it has largely been ignored or considered to be indistinguishable from other, better-known sauropods. For example, Russell and Zheng found its tooth to be indistinguishable from those of Mamenchisaurus.[3]

Bohlin described a larger tooth in the 1953 publication as "Species A. (aff. Chiayüsaurus)", which he thought might belong to the type species.[2] In 1997, Lee, Yang, and Park described a new species from South Korea based on a tooth (KPE 8001) which they regarded as being identical to "Species A. (aff. Chiayüsaurus)". This new species, C. asianensis, is from the Aptian-Albian-age Lower Cretaceous Hasandong Formation of Namdo, Gyeongsang. The authors rejected the suggestion that Bohlin's two teeth may have differed from being in different places in the jaw, and separated their species on the basis of details of the wear surfaces and placement of ridges. The C. asianensis tooth crown is 46 mm (1.8 in) long.[4]

Both species were reviewed in 2002 by Barrett et al. They regarded the type tooth of C. lacustris as nearly identical to teeth of Euhelopus but were unable to conclusively establish synonymy, finding it to be an indeterminate eusauropod. They found that C. lacustris and C. asianensis shared no special features, and instead differed. C. asianensis was regarded as a possible titanosauriform, but still indeterminate.[5] In the most recent review of sauropods, both species were considered to be dubious without comment.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Upchurch, Paul M.; Paul M. Barrett; Peter Dodson (2004). "Sauropoda". In Weishampel, David B.; Peter Dodson; Halszka Osmólska (eds.). The Dinosauria (2nd edition). Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 259–322. ISBN 0-520-24209-2.
  2. ^ a b Bohlin, Birger (1953). "Fossil reptiles from Mongolia and Kansu". The Sino-Swedish Expedition Publication. 37 (6): 1–113.
  3. ^ Russell, Dale A.; Z. Zheng (1993). "A large mamenchisaurid from the Junggar Basin, Xinjiang, People's Republic of China". Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences. 30 (10–11): 2082–2095. doi:10.1139/e93-180.
  4. ^ Lee, Yuong-Nam; Seong-Young Yang; Eun-Ju Park (1997). "Sauropod dinosaur remains from the Gyeongsang Supergroup Korea". Paleontological Society of Korea, Special Publication. 2: 103–114.
  5. ^ Barrett, Paul M.; Yoshikazu Hasegawa; Makoto Manabe; Shinji Isaji; Hiroshige Matsuoka (2002). "Sauropod dinosaurs from the Lower Cretaceous of eastern Asia: taxonomic and biogeographical implications". Palaeontology. 45 (6): 1197–1217. doi:10.1111/1475-4983.00282.
  • Dinosaurs portal
  • v
  • t
  • e
Avemetatarsalia
    • see Avemetatarsalia
Sauropodomorpha
    • see below↓
Saturnaliidae
Unaysauridae
Plateosauridae
Riojasauridae
Massospondylidae
Sauropodiformes
Anchisauria
Sauropoda
    • see below↓
Buriolestes schultzi

Pantydraco caducus Massospondylus carinatus

Jingshanosaurus xinwaensis
Lessemsauridae
Vulcanodontidae
Cetiosauridae
Mamenchisauridae
Turiasauria
Neosauropoda
Diplodocoidea
  • (see below ↓ )
Macronaria
  • (see below ↓ )
Dubious sauropods
Vulcanodon karibaensis

Barapasaurus tagorei Patagosaurus fariasi

Turiasaurus riodevnesis
Rebbachisauridae
Khebbashia
Limaysaurinae
Rebbachisaurinae
Flagellicaudata
Dicraeosauridae
Diplodocidae
Apatosaurinae
Diplodocinae
Dicraeosaurus hansemanni Diplodocus carnegii
Camarasauridae
Brachiosauridae
Somphospondyli
Euhelopodidae
Diamantinasauria
Titanosauria
    • see below↓
Pelorosaurus brevis

Sauroposeidon proteles

Wintonotitan wattsi
Lirainosaurinae
Colossosauria
Rinconsauria
Aeolosaurini
Lognkosauria
Saltasauroidea
Nemegtosauridae
Saltasauridae
Opisthocoelicaudiinae
Saltasaurinae
Dubious titanosaurs
Andesaurus delgadoi

Ampelosaurus atacis Futalognkosaurus dukei

Saltasaurus loricatus
Topics in sauropodomorph research
Taxon identifiers
Chiayusaurus