Zhanghenglong

Say it like this: “jahng-huhng-long”

Zhanghenglong yangchengensis

Zhanghenglong ate plants and walked on two or four legs. It lived in the Late Cretaceous. Bones have been found in China.

Quiz me on Zhanghenglong

When: Late Cretaceous (Santonian) · roughly 85.7 to 83.6 million years ago
Named in: 2014 · Xing, H.; Wang, D.; Han, F.; Sullivan, C.; Ma, Q.; He, Y.; Hone, D. W. E.; Yan, R.; Du, F.; Xu, X.
Hip height: Not established
Length: 5.3 m · 17 ft
Weight: Not established
Found in: China · Majiacun
Food and walking: Herbivore · Two or four legs
Kind: beaked plant-eater · Ornithopod
Family branch: Hadrosauromorpha

The story in short

In 2014, H. Xing and colleagues published the name Zhanghenglong. The name honors a person tied to the fossil or its study.

Fossils referred to Zhanghenglong date to the Late Cretaceous (Santonian), roughly 85.7 to 83.6 million years ago. Finds come from China, including the Majiacun Formation. It was a herbivore and could move on two or four legs.

Published estimates put Zhanghenglong at a length near 5.3 m.

On the family tree it sits in Hadrosauromorpha, among the ornithopod dinosaurs.

Close relatives

Bactrosaurus

Bactrosaurus johnsoni

Late Cretaceous (Campanian) · roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago

Claosaurus

Claosaurus agilis

Late Cretaceous (Coniacian · Santonian) · roughly 89.8 to 83.6 million years ago

Eolambia

Eolambia caroljonesa

Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) · roughly 100.5 to 93.9 million years ago