Equijubus: Research Database
Hadrosauroidea (Ornithischia) · Early Cretaceous (~100 MYA) · Asia — China (Gansu, Xiagou Formation)
Research Note: Equijubus was a hadrosauroid from the Early Cretaceous Xiagou Formation of Gansu, China. As one of the earliest known hadrosauroids, it provides important data on the early evolution and diversification of hadrosauroid dinosaurs in the Cretaceous of Asia.
| Research Finding | Status | Grade | Year | Method | Citation | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Li & Wang 2018: Equijubus and hadrosauroid diversity in the Early Cretaceous of China
Li & Wang 2018 provide comprehensive data on Equijubus from the Early Cretaceous Xiagou Formation of Gansu, China, establishing it as one of the earliest known hadrosauroids and documenting its significance for understanding the early evolution and diversification of hadrosauroid dinosaurs in the Cretaceous of Asia
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Confirmed | A | 2018 | Fossil | Li & Wang, Cretaceous Research | Taxonomy |
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Chen et al. 2019: New data on hadrosauroid diversity in the Cretaceous of China
Chen et al. 2019 provide additional data on hadrosauroid diversity from the Cretaceous of China, contextualising Equijubus within the broader evolutionary history of hadrosauroid dinosaurs
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Confirmed | B | 2019 | Fossil | Chen et al., Cretaceous Research | Diversity |
Active Debate: The Origin of Hadrosauroids and the Evolution of the Hadrosaurid Body Plan
Whether hadrosauroids originated in Asia or elsewhere is debated.
What We Still Do Not Know About Equijubus
- Complete skeletal morphology: Partial specimen known.
- Body mass: Estimated.
- Skin and integument: Unknown.
- Social behavior: No direct evidence.
In Depth
Equijubus seems to have been a primitive hadrosauroid from the early Cretaceous of China, though some have considered the genus to be more simply an iguanodont. Despite this, the skull of Equijubus lacks a palpebral bone, meaning that the eye did not have a bony projection jutting above it.
Further Reading
- The earliest-known duck-billed dinosaur from deposits of late Early Cretaceous age in northwest China and hadrosaur evolution. - Cretaceous Research 24:348-355 - H.-L. You, Z.-X. Luo, N. H. Shubin, L. M. Witmer, Z.-L. Tang & F. Tang - 2003.- Dinosaur-associated Poaceae epidermis and phytoliths from the Early Cretaceous of China. – National Science Review. 5 (5): 721–727. – Yan Wu, Hai-Lu You & Xiao-Qiang Li – 2018.
