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'Giraffe of the Mesozoic' Dinosaur Unearthed in China

Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News

Photos

Previously it was thought that sauropods were most prevalent during the Jurassic Period of North America and Africa, with some paleontologists theorizing these dinosaurs underwent a rapid population decline in the Early Cretaceous.

"However, based on recent discoveries, more and more Cretaceous sauropods have been recovered, and many are from Asia," Hai Lu said.

The same site where Q. kangxii was found has turned into a hotbed for dinosaur fossils of that period, with at least three new species discovered there in just the past few years.

As a result, Jerry Harris, director of paleontology at Dixie State College, told Discovery News that he's "rarely surprised" now by unusual dinosaur finds in China.

"What makes this discovery so important is how it fits into the bigger picture of how dinosaur populations were able to move around globally in the Early Cretaceous," Harris said, explaining that land connections between the continents were disappearing at around this time.

The new Chinese brachiosaur, however, shares characteristics with dinosaurs found in North America, suggesting that some connections between the continents did still exist at that time, if only intermittently, he added.

Dinosaurs 100 million years ago seem to have taken advantage of these connections, which could explain why many North American and Chinese dinosaurs appear to have been closely related.

Harris believes the new dinosaur find in China "is a wonderful discovery that adds new knowledge to our understanding of how dinosaurs could move around during this time period."

Related Links:

Jennifer Viegas' Blog: Born Animal

Dinosaur Central

Discovery News: Dinosaurs