New Dinosaur Discovered in China Named After Dragon King
Posted on May 3, 2013
The fossil remains of a previously unknown dinosaur were found by a George Washington University biologist in northwestern China. The dinosaur is a species of small theropod. It is named Aorun zhaoi, after the Dragon King in the Chinese epic tale Journey to the West.
The skull, mandible and partial skeleton of the dinosaur were recovered. The fossil found is of an infant that died on the banks of the stream. The scientists say it was less than one year old when it perished. It is estimated to have been about 3 feet long and had small, numerous teeth. Adults of the species could have been significantly larger. Aorun zhaoi lived over 161 million years ago.
The discovery was made by James Clark, the Ronald B. Weintraub Professor of Biology, in the Department of Biological Sciences of GW's Columbian College of Arts and Sciences.
Dr. Clark said in a statement, "All that was exposed on the surface was a bit of the leg. We were pleasantly surprised to find a skull buried in the rock too."
The research paper was published here in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology.