Xiyunykus

Zi-yun-e-kus
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Liam Carter

Paleoanthropologist

Liam Carter explores the roots of humanity by studying early human fossils and artifacts. His ground-breaking work has provided a deeper understanding of our ancestors' lifestyles and social structures.

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Name

Xiyunykus.

Phonetic

Zi-yun-e-kus

Named By

X.‭ ‬Xu,‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Choiniere,‭ ‬Q.-W.‭ ‬Tan,‭ ‬R.‭ ‬B.‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Benson,‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Clark,‭ ‬C.‭ ‬Sullivan,‭ ‬Q.‭ ‬Zhao,‭ ‬F.-L.‭ ‬Han,‭ ‬Q.-Y.‭ ‬Ma,‭ ‬Y.-M.‭ ‬He,‭ ‬S.‭ ‬Wang,‭ ‬H.‭ ‬Xing‭ & ‬L.‭ ‬Tan‭ ‬-‭ ‬2018.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Saurischia,‭ ‬Theropoda,‭ Alvarezsauridae.

Diet

Insectivore‭?

Species

X.‭ ‬pengi‭

Size

Roughly estimated around 2.3 meters long for the holotype.

Known locations

China.

Time Period

Barremian/Aptian of the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Partial skeleton.

In Depth

       Xiyunykus is a genus of alvarezsaurid dinosaur that lived in China during the early Cretaceous.‭ ‬In terms of alvarezsaur evolution,‭ ‬Xiyunykus shows an intermediate development between primitive ancestors and more developed descendents.

       Care should be taken not to confuse the Xiyunykus with the similarly named alvarezsaur Xixianykus.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Two early Cretaceous fossils document transitional stages in alvarezsaurian dinosaur evolution.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Current Biology‭ ‬28:2853-2860.‭ ‬-‭ ‬X.‭ ‬Xu,‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Choiniere,‭ ‬Q.-W.‭ ‬Tan,‭ ‬R.‭ ‬B.‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Benson,‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Clark,‭ ‬C.‭ ‬Sullivan,‭ ‬Q.‭ ‬Zhao,‭ ‬F.-L.‭ ‬Han,‭ ‬Q.-Y.‭ ‬Ma,‭ ‬Y.-M.‭ ‬He,‭ ‬S.‭ ‬Wang,‭ ‬H.‭ ‬Xing‭ & ‬L.‭ ‬Tan‭ ‬-‭ ‬2018.

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