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100-million-year-old dinosaur fossil found in northeast China
Beijing, Oct 14: Chinese scientists have found for the first time the fossilised bones of a 100-million year-old vegetarian giant dinosaur at a village in northeast China`s Jilin province, a report said today.
Beijing, Oct 14: Chinese scientists have found for
the first time the fossilised bones of a 100-million year-old
vegetarian giant dinosaur at a village in northeast China's
Jilin province, a report said today.
The find includes fossils of a one-meter-long lower limb
and three-meter-long vertebra, the Director of Palaeontology
and Stratigraphy Research Centre with Jilin University, Sun Ge
said.
"The entire dinosaur might measure some 20 meters long by inference after our data analysis," Sun said.
The fossil was first discovered by Zhang Xianshan, a farmer at Xidi village in Jiutai city, who later alerted local authorities in late September reporting he had discovered "rock like bones".
Scientists at the Centre rushed to the scene and uncovered the "bone-like" fossil before transporting it to Changchun-based Jijlin University.
The purple stratum where the fossil was found dates to the cretaceous period sediment, which means the fossil might date back 90 million to 100 million years, scientists said.
"The pieces are from Titanosauridae, a vegetarian giant dinosaur species," said Prof Dong Zhiming, who specialises in dinosaur research.
"It is the first discovery of such dinosaurs in east Asia," Dong said, adding that the discovery will help further the study on the evolution of dinosaurs in China.
"We found some smaller dinosaur fossils, probably a dinosaur group, at the dig," he said.
Bureau Report
"The entire dinosaur might measure some 20 meters long by inference after our data analysis," Sun said.
The fossil was first discovered by Zhang Xianshan, a farmer at Xidi village in Jiutai city, who later alerted local authorities in late September reporting he had discovered "rock like bones".
Scientists at the Centre rushed to the scene and uncovered the "bone-like" fossil before transporting it to Changchun-based Jijlin University.
The purple stratum where the fossil was found dates to the cretaceous period sediment, which means the fossil might date back 90 million to 100 million years, scientists said.
"The pieces are from Titanosauridae, a vegetarian giant dinosaur species," said Prof Dong Zhiming, who specialises in dinosaur research.
"It is the first discovery of such dinosaurs in east Asia," Dong said, adding that the discovery will help further the study on the evolution of dinosaurs in China.
"We found some smaller dinosaur fossils, probably a dinosaur group, at the dig," he said.
Bureau Report