Open Paleo

Qianlong

Han et al., 2024 chee-an-long

From Mandarin '黔' (Qian), a name for Guizhou Province, China, and 'long' (龙) meaning 'dragon'; meaning 'Guizhou dragon.' The specific name shouhu means 'guarding' in Mandarin, referencing the associated adult and embryo fossils.

199.5–192.9 million years ago Sinemurian, Early Jurassic
Early Jurassic stages

Qianlong is an extinct genus of basal sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Early Jurassic Ziliujing Formation of China. Known from partial skeletons of three mature individuals associated with several eggs, some of which contain embryos, these fossils may represent the oldest leathery eggs currently known.

Under dispute

Qianlong shouhu was placed as a basal sauropodiform, sister to Yunnanosaurus, by its describers (Han and colleagues, 2024), but is recovered among basal massopodans by Wang and colleagues (2025).

Diagnosis

  1. Shallow concavity at base of premaxilla nasal process
  2. Relatively straight teeth with labiolingually asymmetrical crowns lacking denticles
  3. Jaw articulation positioned lower than dentary dorsal margin
  4. Short retroarticular process
  5. Very small external mandibular fenestra
  6. Well-developed nutritive foramina on maxillary and dentary
  7. Metacarpal I width greater than length
  8. Metatarsal V with strongly expanded proximal end four times distal mediolateral width and lateral bulge

Species

Qianlong shouhu Han et al., 2024

Type species

From Mandarin 'shouhu' (守护) meaning 'guarding' or 'protecting', in reference to the discovery of the adult skeleton in close association with fossil eggs containing embryos.

Holotype
GZPM VN001 , Guizhou Provincial Museum
Material
Partial semi-articulated skeleton with partial skull and mandible (mandible preserved 30 m west of the postcranial skeleton); adult individual
Horizon
Zhenzhuchong Member, Ziliujing Formation, Sinemurian, Early Jurassic , 199.5–192.9 million years ago
Locality
Zhuanpo, Guizhou, China

Notable specimens

  • GZPM VN004, GZPM VN005, GZPM VN006, GZPM VN007, GZPM VN008

    Guizhou Provincial Museum reproductive

    Five clutches of leathery eggs, some containing embryos and hatchlings, found in association with the adult skeletons. The specific name shouhu ("guarding") references this adult-and-embryo association.

    Han et al. (2024)

  • GZPM VN002, GZPM VN003

    Guizhou Provincial Museum ontogeny

    Two referred juvenile skeletons documenting ontogenetic change: the skull, mandible, forelimbs, and shoulder girdles are proportionally larger than in adults, similar to the related sauropodomorphs Massospondylus and Mussaurus.

    Han et al. (2024)

References

  1. Han, F.; Yu, Y.; Zhang, S.; Zeng, R.; Wang, X.; Cai, H.; Wu, T.; Wen, Y.; Cai, S.; Li, C.; Wu, R.; Zhao, Q.; Xu, X. (2024). Exceptional Early Jurassic fossils with leathery eggs shed light on dinosaur reproductive biology. National Science Review 11(6). Oxford University Press (OUP). doi:10.1093/nsr/nwad258 han2024b
  2. Wang, Y. M.; Zhang, Q. N.; Wang, Y. C.; Xu, H.; Chen, J.; Feng, Z.; Xu, X.; Wang, T.; You, H. L. (2025). A new Early Jurassic dinosaur represents the earliest-diverging and oldest sauropodomorph of East Asia. Scientific Reports 15(1). Springer Science and Business Media LLC. doi:10.1038/s41598-025-12185-2

    Recovered Qianlong shouhu among basal massopodans, not basal sauropodiforms.

    wang2025a