Chilantaisaurus tashuikouensis
- 演化之聲
- Mar 19
- 2 min read
Age
Cretaceous（Turonian）
92 Ma
Taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Sauropsida
Order: Saurischia
Genus: Chilantaisaurus
Species: Chilantaisaurus tashuikouensis
Morphological description
Chilantaisaurus tashuikouensis was a large theropod, reaching approximately 11 meters in length and an estimated body mass of around 6 metric tons. The forelimbs were notably robust, with a long and stout humerus measuring nearly half the length of the femur and showing a slight S-shaped curvature. The second manual claw was particularly well developed, strongly curved, sharply pointed, and laterally compressed, with a distinct groove running along each side.
The hind limbs were also powerful. The femur exceeded 1.1 meters in length, while the tibia was shorter, measuring about 80% of the femoral length. The metatarsals were proportionally shorter compared to those of many other theropods.
Etymology
The genus name Chilantaisaurus refers to the nearby Chilantai Salt Lake, combined with the common dinosaur suffix -saurus.
The species name tashuikouensis is derived from Dashuikou, located approximately 60 kilometers north of Chilantai Salt Lake, where the fossils were discovered.
Biological description
The specimen IVPP V 2884 of Chilantaisaurus tashuikouensis was discovered in 1960 and formally described in 1964. Initially, it was assigned to the family Megalosauridae. Subsequent studies, however, have questioned this classification, with various hypotheses placing it within Spinosauridae, Allosauroidea, Megaraptora, or Tyrannosauroidea. Current interpretations generally suggest closer affinities with coelurosaurs, particularly within or near Megaraptora and Tyrannosauroidea.
This species likely functioned as an apex predator within its ecosystem. The same geological formation has yielded fossils of herbivorous dinosaurs, including pachycephalosaurs, ornithomimosaurs, and ornithopods, indicating a diverse terrestrial community in which Chilantaisaurus occupied a top predatory role.
（Author: Bai Leng）
References
1. Hu, S.-Y. (1964). Carnosaurian remains from Alashan, Inner Mongolia. Vertebrata PalAsiatica.
2. Benson R.B.J., Carrano M.T., Brusatte S.L. (2010). A new clade of archaic large-bodied predatory dinosaurs (Theropoda: Allosauroidea) that survived to the latest Mesozoic. Naturwissenschaften.
3. Juan D. P., Rubén D. J. V., Domenica D.D. S., Matthew C. L. (2018). A new megaraptoran theropod dinosaur from the Upper Cretaceous Bajo de la Carpa Formation of northwestern Patagonia. Cretaceous Research.
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