Jiangjunosaurus

Je-ang-ju-no-sore-us.
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Maeve Foster

Paleoclimatologist

Maeve Foster explores the Earth's climatic past to understand the forces that shaped life on our planet. Her research into ancient climate events provides valuable context for current environmental challenges.

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Name

Jiangjunosaurus ‭(‬Jiangjun lizard‭)‬.

Phonetic

Je-ang-ju-no-sore-us.

Named By

C.‭ ‬Jia,‭ ‬C.‭ ‬A.‭ ‬Forster,‭ ‬X.‭ ‬Xu‭ & ‬J.‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Clark‭ ‬-‭ ‬2007.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Ornithischia, Thyreophora,‭ ‬Stegosauria,‭ ‬Stegosauridae.

Diet

Herbivore.

Species

J.‭ ‬junggarensis‭

Size

Uncertain,‭ ‬due to lack of remains,‭ ‬but in the past has been roughly estimated to be around the‭ ‬6‭ ‬meters mark.

Known locations

China,‭ ‬Xinjiang‭ ‬-‭ ‬Shishugou Formation.

Time Period

Oxfordian of the Jurassic.

Fossil representation

Partial skull and lower jaws,‭ ‬as well as partial post cranial skeletal remains including scapula,‭ ‬coracoid,‭ ‬ribs,‭ ‬eleven cervical‭ (‬neck‭) ‬vertebrae and two plates from the neck area.‭ ‬Holotype fossils are of a subadult individual.

In Depth

       Jiangjunosaurus is a genus of stegosaurid dinosaur that lived in China during the earlier part of late Jurassic.‭ ‬Though Jiangjunosaurus is far from complete,‭ ‬this stegosaur is known to have had a skull that was elongated in proportion to its width.‭ ‬Jiangjunosaurus was found by itself,‭ ‬and because generals are buried in temples by themselves,‭ ‬the name Jiangjunosaurus was chosen as‭ ‘‬Jiangjun‭’ ‬is Chinese for‭ ‘‬general‭’‬.

       Other dinosaurs that are known from the same fossil bearing formation as Jiangjunosaurus include the primitive ceratopsian dinosaur Yinlong,‭ ‬and sauropods such as Mamenchisaurus,‭ ‬Bellusaurus and Tienshanosaurus.‭ ‬Numerous small theropod dinosaurs such as Guanlong,‭ ‬Zuolong and Aorun may have also lived in the same habitat as Jiangjunosaurus,‭ ‬but particular predatory threats to Jiangjunosaurus likely include the larger Monolophosaurus and Sinraptor.‭ ‬In the skies above Jiangjunosaurus,‭ ‬pterosaurs such as Sericipterus flew.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬The first stegosaur‭ (‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Ornithischia‭) ‬from the Upper Jurassic Shishugou Formation of Xinjiang,‭ ‬China.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Acta Geologica Sinica‭ ‬81‭(‬3‭)‬:351-356.‭ ‬-‭ ‬C.‭ ‬Jia,‭ ‬C.‭ ‬A.‭ ‬Forster,‭ ‬X.‭ ‬Xu‭ & ‬J.‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Clark‭ ‬-‭ ‬2007.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT