Describer

Godefroit, Hai, Yu & Lauters 2008

Time

Cretaceous Late Maastrichtian

Classification

Ornithischia Ornithopoda Hadrosauridae

Diet

Herbivore

Fossilsite

Yuliangze Formation Wulaga, Heilongjiang province,Coordinates of the site: N 4823’40.9’’ E 130.08’44.6’’.’ China

Info

Genus - Typespecies - Skull

Holotype

GMH W184, a right dentary

Material

BraincasesGMHWJ1,W384, W421; jugal GMH W166; maxillae GMH W233, W400−10; dentary GMH W217; scapulae GMH W267, W411; sternals GMH W194, W401; humeri GMH W320, W515−B; ischium: GMH W398−A.

Ethymology

Wulaga is the type locality of this new genus; sauros, the Greek for lizard. In honour of Dong Zhi−Ming, one of the most famous dinosaur specialists, for his fundamental contribution to the knowledge of dinosaurs in China.

Diagnosis

Hadrosaurine dinosaur characterised by the following autapomorphies: very slender dentary, with a ratio “length of the dentary battery/maximum height of the dental ramus taken around the middle of the dental battery” >4.5; lateral side of dentary not pierced by foramina; edge of the deltopectoral crest oriented quite cranially; humeral articular head extends distally as a very long and prominent vertical ridge; inner tuberosity much better developed than outer tuberosity on the proximal end of the humerus. Also differs from all other known hadrosaurines by its short sagittal, less than 2/3 the length of the parietal; differs from Gryposaurus, Kerberosaurus, Prosaurolophus, Saurolophus, Edmontosaurus, and Anatotitan by its short supraoccipital−exoccipital shelf. (Godefroit, P., Hai, S., Yu, T., and Lauters, P. 2008)