Fun Yangchuanosaurus Facts For Kids

These dinosaurs originate from around 161-157 million years ago, during the Oxfordian stage (the Late Jurassic period). During the construction of the Shangyou Reservoir Dam in June 1977, a construction worker spotted it. Yangchuanosaurus zigongensis dinosaurs, having a carnivore diet, have been discovered on various occasions. Y. zigongensis Size Range about 26 ft (8 m) long. A third specimen was classified as Y. shangyouensis by Carrano et al. (2012). An incomplete postcranial skeleton without the skull is used to symbolize it. It was discovered near Zigong, Sichuan, at the Wujiaba Quarry. It was most likely an apex predator feeding on dinosaurs like Mamenchisaurus in China at the time. It was a massive, deadly predator capable of taking down even the largest sauropods. However, Yangchuanosaurus may have also been a scavenger.

If you want to know and learn more about this interesting dinosaur, then just scroll on ahead, and read up all about the Yangchuanosaurus! There are so many other dinosaurs to know about, such as the Caviramus and Heterodontosaurus, so do not forget to check them out!

How do you pronounce 'Yangchuanosaurus'?

The word Yangchuanosaurus is pronounced at 'Yahng-chwahn-oh-sawr-us'.

What type of dinosaur was a Yangchuanosaurus?

Yangchuanosaurus shangyouensis is a metriacanthosaurid theropod dinosaur genus from the Middle to Late Jurassic periods in China.  

In which geological period did the Yangchuanosaurus roam the earth?

Yangchuanosaurus shangyouensis is a Theropoda dinosaur that lived in the Upper Shaximiao Formation. It belongs to the Allosauroidea superfamily, which lived from the Late Jurassic to the Early Cretaceous. The Beijing Museum of Natural History has mounted skeletons of Yangchuanosaurus.

When did the Yangchuanosaurus become extinct?

During the late Jurassic and early Cretaceous eras, Yangchuanosaurus dinosaurs lived between 161-157 million years ago. However, the early Cretaceous epoch is described as 145.5 million years ago, when the Yangchuanosaurus is thought to have died out.

Where did a Yangchuanosaurus live?

Yangchuanosaurus was a prehistoric theropod dinosaur that lived in China in the late Jurassic era between 161-157 million years ago and was comparable in size and looks to Allosaurus, a European and North American kin.

What was a Yangchuanosaurus's habitat?

Yangchuanosaurus dinosaurs, owning bony noses and strong jaws, were carnivores and lived in terrestrial habitats.

Who did a Yangchuanosaurus live with?

Although this dinosaur Yangchuanosaurus was an ambush predator, it is possible that it hunted in packs. Carnivorous dinosaurs were assumed to hunt alone for a long time, but this dinosaur may have been an outlier. If it hunted in packs, as lions do, it would have been a powerful opponent, capable of annihilating any dinosaur it selected as prey.

How long did a Yangchuanosaurus live?

Due to a scarcity of full skeletons (displayed at Beijing museum), it's impossible to estimate a life duration based on the Yangchuanosaurus skeletons we have.

How did they reproduce?

Yangchuanosaurus, Yang-ch'uan' lizard, will procreate and deposit eggs in the same way as other reptiles. However, like other reptiles, their eggs will develop in a few weeks, and the young will be on their feet in as little as a few hours.

What did a Yangchuanosaurus look like?

Yangchuanosaurus skull was up to 2.69 ft (0.8 m) long, and its overall body length was estimated to be around 26 ft (8 m). Another specimen belonging to the new species Y. Magnus was considerably larger, measuring 3.6 ft (1 m) in length. It might have been up to 35 ft (10.6 m) long and weighed almost about 6613.8-7716.1 lb (3000-3500 kg). Like Ceratosaurus, it had a bony ridge on its nose and many hornets and ridges. Carnivore Yangchuanosaurus was a colossal, meat-eating dinosaur. It possessed two enormous, muscular legs, a strong, short neck, short arms, a large head with strong jaws, large, serrated teeth, and moved on two large, strong legs. It had a long, enormous tail that was roughly half the length of its body. It had short arms. It had a little dewclaw on the first digit of its foot. Each of the three outside toes had a large claw that was used to bear the weight. Much of Yangchuanosaurus skin was thick and scaly.

How many bones did a Yangchuanosaurus have?

It's impossible to know how many bones these dinosaurs' skeletons displayed at Beijing Museum because they don't have a full skeleton to account for.

How did they communicate?

As per the Yangchuanosaurus anatomy, these dinosaurs' communication abilities are still being studied.

How big was a Yangchuanosaurus?

The Yangchuanosaurus size was about 35-36 ft (10.6-11 m). When we study Paleontology, we find some interesting comparisons, such as the Yangchuanosaurus vs. Eustreptospondylus, Yangchuanosaurus vs. Xenotarsosaurus, and Yangchuanosaurus versus Tyrannosaurus rex.

How fast could a Yangchuanosaurus move?

Yangchuanosaurus was a relatively swift runner who walked on two powerful long legs. Its bipedal powerful tail helped it travel fast, reaching speeds of up to 25 mph (40.2 kph). The estimated walking speed was around 5 mph (8 kph). In addition, it had extraordinarily large and muscular legs.

How much did a Yangchuanosaurus weigh?

The estimated body weight of Yangchuanosaurus was about 6613.8-7716.1 lb (3000-3500 kg) and possessed a tail that was relatively half the length of its body.

What were the male and female names of the species?

The male and female of these late Jurassic-era large dinosaurs (skeletons on display at the Beijing Museum of Natural History) have no specific names.

What would you call a baby Yangchuanosaurus?

The species' baby dinosaurs, which ate a predatory diet and weighed approximately 5200 lb (2358.68 kg), lacked a specific name.

What did they eat?

Yangchuanosaurus shangyouensis was a large carnivorous dinosaur that lived between 168-157 million years ago.

Yangchuanosaurus had comparable prey to Sauropods, Allosaurus, and Stegosaurs. When comparing Yangchuanosaurus vs Allosaurus, they most likely hunted in packs, just as Allosaurus. Nothing has been affirmed, but if Yangchuanosaurus is related to Allosaurus, we can assume it had a sluggish bite force and used an exceptional 'hatchet bite' method to kill its prey, in which the user whacks his head down like an ax or hatchet and slams into whatever the prey is with a lot of force.

How aggressive were they?

Yangchuanosaurus dinosaurs were violent and aggressive predators with large body sizes and sharp curved teeth. When comparing spinosaurus vs Yangchuanosaurus, however, spinosaurus was the more hazardous of the two.

Did you know...

Serrated strong teeth, unique jaw, bony skull, speed, Yangchuanosaurus healing capabilities, specific neck muscles, and group strategies were all used by Yangchuanosaurus to defend itself from attack.

When comparing Tyrannosaurus rex vs. Yangchuanosaurus, Yangchuanosaurus was shorter, lighter, and had longer arms. It possessed a large skull and powerful legs, similar to T. rex dinosaurs.

The Chongqing Museum of Natural History lab was partially drowned in flood in 1981, and fossils of this species were eventually lost. Fortunately, neither the museum personnel nor the fossil material was damaged as a result of the occurrence.

Yangchuanosaurus dinosaur was entitled 'lizard of Yang-ch'uan' by Dong Zhiming, was a carnosaur, a type of dinosaur recognized for having a high level of intellect (determined by analyzing body size to brain size).

When analyzing Yangchuanosaurus vs. tyrannosaurus, keep in mind that Yangchuanosaurus existed in the late Late Jurassic, but tyrannosaurus flourished in the upper Cretaceous era.

How fast could the Yangchuanosaurus run?

Yangchuanosaurus is a Metriacanthosaurid that resembles Allosaurus in appearance. Yangchuanosaurus, like Allosaurus, was presumably a pretty fast runner. Still, due to the large weight differential and the lack of length difference, Yangchuanosaurus was likely a considerably slower dinosaur capable of running at only 25 mph (40.2 kph).

Where was the Yangchuanosaurus found?

In the '70s, Yangchuanosaurus was discovered in Yang-ch'uan, China (in Szechuan, eastern China). The Beijing Natural History Museum has it on display. Yangchuanosaurus dinosaur was named by Dong Zhiming and Zhou (1978), and the meaning is lizard from Yang-ch’uan, China. Thus, this theropod was named after the area in which it was discovered, Yongchuan, in China. This carnivore was roughly 33 ft (10 m) long and weighed as much as 5200 lb (2358.68 kg).

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly dinosaur facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these Xenotarsosaurus facts, or Chilantaisaurus facts for kids.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable Yangchuanosaurus coloring pages.

Second image by Kumiko.