Siluosaurus
A small ornithischian dinosaur known only from two teeth.
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It is known only from two teeth, which represent the type species Siluosaurus zhanggiani. The genus is named for the Silk Road, reflecting the location of its discovery.
Scientific classification
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumChordata
- ClassReptilia
- CladeDinosauria
- Clade†Ornithischia
- Genus†Siluosaurus
- SpeciesSiluosaurus zhanggiani
Named by Dong, 1997
Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Siluosaurus (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Quick Facts
- Type species
- Siluosaurus zhanggiani
- Specimen
- IVPP V.11117 (1-2)
- Geological formation
- Xinminbao Group
- Geological age
- Early Cretaceous (Barremian-Albian)
- Location
- Gansu, China
- Described by
- Dong Zhiming
- Year of description
- 1997
Facts from the source article.
History
The two teeth that define Siluosaurus were dug up in 1992 during a joint Chinese-Japanese expedition along the Silk Road, from the lower Xinminbao Group. One tooth, from the upper beak, measures seven millimetres long; the other, from the cheek region, is 3.7 millimetres tall. Dong Zhiming gave the dinosaur its name in 1997, placing it among the hypsilophodontids and pointing out these were the smallest ornithopod teeth ever found.
The species name, zhanggiani, honors Zhang Qian, a second-century B.C. Chinese diplomat who scouted the Silk Road. Later reviewers have considered Siluosaurus a dubious name, a common fate for tooth-based dinosaurs. A 2024 study listed it as an indeterminate cerapodan.
Did You Know?
- The teeth were described as the smallest ornithopod teeth yet known at the time of naming.
- Fonseca et al. (2024) recovered Siluosaurus as an indeterminate member of Cerapoda in their supplementary material.
More in Tooth Taxa
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Siluosaurus (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Word definitions: the , each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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