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armored dinosaur
Saichania
Say it like this: “sie-KAHN-ee-a”
Saichania chulsanensis
Saichania ate plants and walked on four legs. It lived in the Late Cretaceous. Bones have been found in Mongolia.
- When
- Late Cretaceous (Campanian) · roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago
- Named in
- 1977 · Maryańska, T.
- Hip height
- 1.2 m · 4 ft
- Length
- 5–7 m · 16–23 ft
- Weight
- 1.4–2 tonnes
- Found in
- Mongolia · Baruungoyot
- Food and walking
- Herbivore · Four legs
- Kind
- armored dinosaur · Ankylosaur
- Family branch
- Ankylosaurinae
The story in short
The genus Saichania dates to 1977, the year T. Maryańska described it. The name means “beautiful one.”
It lived in the Late Cretaceous (Campanian), roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago. Finds come from Mongolia, including the Baruungoyot Formation. It was a herbivore and walked on four legs.
Published estimates put Saichania at a length near 5–7 m, hips about 1.2 m high, and a body mass around 1.4–2 tonnes.
On the family tree it sits in Ankylosaurinae, among the armored dinosaurs.
Close relatives
Akainacephalus
Akainacephalus johnsoni
Late Cretaceous (Campanian) · roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago
Ankylosaurus
Ankylosaurus magniventris
Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago
Anodontosaurus
Anodontosaurus lambei
Late Cretaceous (Campanian · Maastrichtian) · roughly 83.6 to 66 million years ago