Open Paleo

Yueosaurus

Zheng et al., 2012 yoo-SOR-us

Named for 'Yue', the ancient name for Zhejiang Province, China, combined with Greek 'sauros' meaning 'lizard'.

113.2–93.9 million years ago Albian–Cenomanian, Early Cretaceous–Late Cretaceous
Early Cretaceous and Late Cretaceous stages

Yueosaurus is an extinct genus of basal neornithischian dinosaur known from Zhejiang Province, China.

Under dispute

Yueosaurus tiantaiensis, formerly treated as a basal ornithopod, is agreed to be a basal neornithischian and not an iguanodontian. Several analyses recover it as a jeholosaurid alongside Jeholosaurus (Boyd 2015; Madzia and colleagues 2017; Manitkoon and colleagues 2023), but Fonseca and colleagues (2024) place Jeholosaurus within Thescelosaurinae and do not recognize Jeholosauridae, leaving its finer position unresolved.

Diagnosis

  1. Prominent and slightly ventrally directed cervical parapophyses
  2. Slender and posteriorly inclined caudal neural spines
  3. Anteroventral expansion of scapula exceeds posteroventral expansion; posterior edge nearly perpendicular to shaft
  4. Scapula bears distinctive ventroscapular groove
  5. Scapula possesses supraglenoidal buttress and supraglenoid fossa
  6. Distal fibula anteroposteriorly compressed and tightly appressed to tibia

Species

Yueosaurus tiantaiensis Zheng et al., 2012

Type species

Named for the Tiantai locality in Zhejiang Province, China, where the holotype was collected.

Holotype
ZMNH M8620 , Zhejiang Museum of Natural History
Material
Partial postcranial skeleton: 6 posterior cervical vertebrae, 5 anterior dorsal vertebrae, 2 middle dorsal vertebrae, 9 caudal vertebrae, rib fragments, chevrons, right scapula, partial left forelimb, partial pelvis, partial right hindlimb
Horizon
Liangtoutang Formation, Albian–Cenomanian, Early Cretaceous–Late Cretaceous , 113.2–93.9 million years ago
Locality
Construction site of the G15W (Shangsan) Expressway beside the factory of Zhejiang InBev Shiliang Beer Co. Ltd., Zhejiang, China

References

  1. Zheng, W.; Jin, X.; Shibata, M.; Azuma, Y.; Yu, F. (2012). A new ornithischian dinosaur from the Cretaceous Liangtoutang Formation of Tiantai, Zhejiang Province, China. Cretaceous Research 34: 208-219. Elsevier BV. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2011.11.001 zheng2012a
  2. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Ornithischians. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the body length estimate.

    jones2026a
  3. Manitkoon, S.; Deesri, U.; Khalloufi, B.; Nonsrirach, T.; Suteethorn, V.; Chanthasit, P.; Boonla, W.; Buffetaut, E. (2023). A New Basal Neornithischian Dinosaur from the Phu Kradung Formation (Upper Jurassic) of Northeastern Thailand. Diversity 15(7). MDPI AG. doi:10.3390/d15070851

    Basal neornithischian description recovered Yueosaurus within Jeholosauridae with Jeholosaurus.

    manitkoon2023a
  4. Fonseca, A. O.; Reid, I. J.; Venner, A.; Duncan, R. J.; Garcia, M. S.; Müller, R. T. (2024). A comprehensive phylogenetic analysis on early ornithischian evolution. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 22: 2346577. doi:10.1080/14772019.2024.2346577

    Comprehensive ornithischian phylogeny placing Jeholosaurus and Changchunsaurus within Thescelosaurinae; does not recognize Jeholosauridae as a clade.

    fonseca2024a
  5. Madzia, D.; Boyd, C. A.; Mazuch, M. (2017). A basal ornithopod dinosaur from the Cenomanian of the Czech Republic. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 16(11): 967-979. Informa UK Limited. doi:10.1080/14772019.2017.1371258

    Recovered Yueosaurus as an early-diverging neornithischian within Jeholosauridae.

    madzia2017a
  6. Boyd, C. A. (2015). The systematic relationships and biogeographic history of ornithischian dinosaurs. PeerJ 3: e1523. PeerJ. doi:10.7717/peerj.1523

    Recovered Yueosaurus as a basal neornithischian.

    boyd2015a
  7. Han, F. L.; Barrett, P. M.; Butler, R. J.; Xu, X. (2012). Postcranial anatomy of Jeholosaurus shangyuanensis (Dinosauria, Ornithischia) from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation of China. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 32(6): 1370-1395. doi:10.1080/02724634.2012.694385

    Postcranial anatomy of Jeholosaurus; basis for the tentative jeholosaurid affinity suggested for Yueosaurus.

    han2012a