| Tienshanosaurus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Holotype scapula,Paleozoological Museum of China | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | †Sauropodomorpha |
| Clade: | †Sauropoda |
| Family: | †Mamenchisauridae |
| Genus: | †Tienshanosaurus Yang,1937 |
| Species: | †T. chitaiensis |
| Binomial name | |
| †Tienshanosaurus chitaiensis Yang, 1937 | |
Tienshanosaurus (meaning "Tienshan lizard") is anextinctgenus ofsauropoddinosaur from the LateJurassic of what is nowChina. Only one species is known,Tienshanosaurus chitaiensis, which was named and described in1937.[1]
On 11 September 1928 Chinesegeology professorYuan Fu ("P.L. Yüan") discovered inXinjiang the remains of about thirty adult and three juvenile sauropods, which he uncovered during the following weeks. The finds, including a fossilized egg, were sent toBeijing where they ultimately became part of the collection of theInstitute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology. In 1937paleontologistYang Zhongjian ("C.C. Young") named thetype speciesTienshanosaurus chitaiensis.[1] The generic name, suggested by Yuan, refers to theTian Shan, the "heavenly mountains". Thespecific name refers to the location Chitai orQitai.
Theholotype,IVPP AS 40002-3, was found nearPaikushan,Luanshantze, insandstone of theShishugou Formation dating from theOxfordian. It consists of elements of thepostcrania. A considerable part of the skeleton is known but not the skull or the lower jaws. The body length has been estimated at twelve metres.
In 1991Ralph Molnar renamedEuhelopus zdanskyi toTienshanosaurus zdanskyi,[2][failed verification] despite the species having priority overT. chitaiensis, made possible by the fact thatEuhelopus is a renaming of the earlierHelopus. Meanwhile,Valérie Martin-Rolland renamedT. chitaiensis intoEuhelopus chitaiensis.[3]
Due to the fragmentary nature of the material and a limited description, it has not been easy to establish the affinities ofTienshanosaurus. Originally classified in theHelopodinae, it has been assigned to many groups, among them theAstrodontidae,Euhelopodidae,Brachiosauridae, andCamarasauridae, but recent consensus (2011) has been to assignTienshanosaurus toMamenchisauridae.[4]
