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sharp-clawed runner
Tongtianlong
Say it like this: “TONG-tee-YEN-long”
Tongtianlong limosus
Tongtianlong ate plants and meat and walked on two legs. It lived in the Late Cretaceous. Bones have been found in China.
- When
- Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago
- Named in
- 2016 · Lü, J.; Chen, R.; Brusatte, S. L.; Zhu, Y.; Shen, C.
- Hip height
- 0.7 m · 2 ft
- Length
- 1.7 m · 6 ft
- Weight
- 17 kg · 37 lb
- Found in
- China · Nanxiong
- Food and walking
- Omnivore · Two legs
- Kind
- sharp-clawed runner · Theropod
- Family branch
- Citipatiinae
The story in short
In 2016, J. Lü and colleagues published the name Tongtianlong. The name means “road to heaven.”
Fossils referred to Tongtianlong date to the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian), roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago. Finds come from China, including the Nanxiong Formation. It was an omnivore and walked on two legs.
Published estimates put Tongtianlong at a length near 1.7 m, hips about 0.7 m high, and a body mass around 17 kg.
On the family tree it sits in Citipatiinae, among the theropod dinosaurs.
Close relatives
Citipati
Citipati osmolskae
Late Cretaceous (Campanian) · roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago
Corythoraptor
Corythoraptor jacobsi
Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago
Ganzhousaurus
Ganzhousaurus nankangensis
Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago