Open Paleo

Yulong

Lü et al., 2013 ee-yuh-long

From Chinese 豫 (yù), the one-character abbreviation of Henan Province (referencing the genus's occurrence there), and 龙 (lóng) meaning 'dragon', a common suffix for Chinese dinosaur names.

72.2–66.0 million years ago Maastrichtian, Late Cretaceous
Late Cretaceous stages

Yulong is an extinct genus of derived oviraptorid theropod dinosaur known from the Late Cretaceous Qiupa Formation of Henan Province, central China. It contains a single species, Yulong mini. It is known from many juvenile specimens that represent some of the smallest known oviraptorids and also a single subadult specimen.

Diagnosis

  1. Posterodorsal corner of antorbital fenestra and anteroventral corner of external naris at same level
  2. Distinct opening in premaxilla anteroventral to external naris
  3. Antorbital fossa partly bordered by premaxilla anterodorsally
  4. Lacrimal process of premaxilla does not contact anterodorsal process of lacrimal
  5. Parietal almost as long as frontal; in dorsal view, posterior margin forms straight line between postzygapophyses in fourth and fifth cervicals
  6. Femur longer than ilium

Species

Yulong mini Lü et al., 2013

Type species

From Latin 'mini', meaning 'small' or 'miniature', in reference to the diminutive size of the specimens, which represent juvenile individuals.

Holotype
HGM 41HIII-0107 , Henan Geological Museum
Material
An exceptionally well-preserved skeleton with skull and lower jaws.
Notes
HGM 41HIII-0108 to -0111 are referred specimens (additional juvenile skulls and postcrania from nearby quarries), not part of the holotype.
Horizon
Qiupa Formation, Maastrichtian, Late Cretaceous , 72.2–66.0 million years ago
Locality
Qiupa Town, Henan, China Wei and colleagues (2022) give Yankan Village, Qiupa Town, for a referred subadult, but map the holotype's site separately.

Notable specimens

  • HGM 41HIII-0706

    Henan Geological Museum ontogeny

    The first non-hatchling specimen of Yulong mini, a subadult about five or six years old by radius histology, preserving dorsal and caudal vertebrae, partial pectoral girdles and forelimbs; from Yankan Village, Qiupa Town.

    Wei et al. (2022)

References

  1. Lü, J.; Currie, P. J.; Xu, L.; Zhang, X.; Pu, H.; Jia, S. (2013). Chicken-sized oviraptorid dinosaurs from central China and their ontogenetic implications. Naturwissenschaften 100(2): 165-175. Springer Science and Business Media LLC. doi:10.1007/s00114-012-1007-0 lü2013d
  2. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Theropods. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the body length, mass, and hip height estimates, and the appearance features.

    jones2026c
  3. Wei, X.; Kundrát, M.; Xu, L.; Ma, W.; Wu, Y.; Chang, H.; Zhang, J.; Zhou, X. (2022). A new subadult specimen of oviraptorid Yulong mini (Theropoda: Oviraptorosauria) from the Upper Cretaceous Qiupa Formation of Luanchuan, central China. Cretaceous Research 138: 105261. Elsevier BV. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2022.105261

    Describes the subadult HGM 41HIII-0706, the first non-hatchling specimen, with a revised diagnosis and bone histology.

    wei2022a