Changzhousaurus
Named after Changzhou city (Jiangsu Province, China), honoring the Changzhou Municipal Government, combined with Greek 'sauros' (lizard); meaning 'Changzhou lizard'.
Changzhousaurus is an extinct genus of paravian theropod dinosaur known from the Early Cretaceous (Aptian age) Jiufotang Formation of China. The genus contains a single species, Changzhousaurus sinensis, known from a nearly complete, articulated skeleton with extensive associated feather traces, preserved as a part and counterpart.
Under dispute
Changzhousaurus was described from a specimen with a mosaic of troodontid, dromaeosaurid, anchiornithid, and avialan features; no quantitative analysis was run, and its describers preferred an early-diverging deinonychosaurian interpretation while conceding anchiornithine or avialan status is not impossible (Xu and colleagues, 2026). It is placed at Deinonychosauria incertae sedis.
Diagnosis
- Premaxilla with a nearly vertical nasal process, a very small prenarial portion, and a large, sub-square subnarial portion
- Anterior caudal vertebrae with a wide ventral intervertebral space occupied by a knob-like chevron lacking a distal process
- Ossified intervertebral discs between the middle and posterior caudal vertebrae
- Furcula with constant width throughout its length
- Scapula with a rod-like acromion process, a dorsally curved and very thick blade, and a mushroom-like expanded distal end
- About sixteen highly elongated tail feathers, around four times femoral length, near the end of the bony tail
Species
Changzhousaurus sinensis Xu, 2026
Type species
From Latin 'sinensis' meaning 'from China', for the country where the holotype was found.
- Holotype
- LDNHMF 2026A, LDNHMF 2026B , Lande Museum of Natural History
- Material
- A nearly complete, articulated skeleton with associated plumage across the body, preserved as part and counterpart.
- Horizon
- Jiufotang Formation, Aptian, Early Cretaceous , 121.4–113.2 million years ago
- Locality
- Lamadong, Liaoning, China
References
- Xu, X. (2026). A new feathered dinosaur from Early Cretaceous of northern China highlighting the complexity of early pennaraptoran evolution and comments on several relevant conceptual and methodological issues. Vertebrata PalAsiatica 1-37. doi:10.19615/j.cnki.2096-9899.260616 xu2026a