Pronunciation: JING-SHAHN-o-SOR-us
Meaning: Jingshan lizard
Author/s: Zhang and Yang (1994)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Yunnan, China
Discovery Chart Position: #401
Jingshanosaurus xinwaensis
Not to be confused with the Early Cretaceous titanosaur known as Jiangshanosaurus,
Jingshanosaurus (with one less "a") is famed for being one of the last living non-sauropod sauropodomorphs (aka "prosauropods"), but it languished in the display exhibits of several museums for years before its fossils were deemed worthy of an official description.
Because of its size, Chinese palaeontologist Zhiming Dong thinks that Jingshanosaurus is merely a super-sized specimen of Yunnanosaurus, a fellow prosauropod from China's Yunnan Province, and if his theory bears out, then the former's name will be abandoned because the latter was coined first. Such are the laws of priority.
Because of its size, Chinese palaeontologist Zhiming Dong thinks that Jingshanosaurus is merely a super-sized specimen of Yunnanosaurus, a fellow prosauropod from China's Yunnan Province, and if his theory bears out, then the former's name will be abandoned because the latter was coined first. Such are the laws of priority.
Etymology
Jingshanosaurus is derived from "Jingshan" — from the Chinese "jing" (gold) and "shan" (hill) — for the nearby town of Jingshan (Golden Hill), and the Greek "sauros" (lizard).
The species epithet, xinwaensis, means "from "Xinwa" in Latin.
Discovery
The only confirmed remains of Jingshanosaurus were discovered in the Shawan Member of the Lower Lufeng Formation at Xinwa, near the town of Jingshan ("Golden Hill"), Lufeng County, Yunnan Province, China.The holotype (LV 003) is a virtually complete skeleton and skull.
