Name:
Yabeinosaurus.
Phonetic: Yah-by-no-sore-us.
Named By: R. Endo & R. Shikama -
1942.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Squamata,
Scleroglossa
Species: Y. tenuis (type).
Diet: Uncertain.
Size: Larger individuals about 35 centimetres
long.
Known locations: China.
Time period: Early Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Partial remains of several
individuals.
Yabeinosaurus
is a genus of lizard that lived in China during the Early Cretaceous.
When first described Yabeinosaurus was thought to
have been like a
small gecko, but this interpretation was based upon the description
of juvenile remains. In 2005, adult specimens were described
for the genus, revealing that Yabeinosaurus grew
larger and more like
an iguana. A specimen of Yabeinosaurus has also
been discovered with
partially formed embryos inside its body, proving that this lizard
was viviparous, meaning that it did not lay eggs but instead gave
birth to live young.
Further reading
- Mesozoic reptilian fauna in the Jehol mountainland, Manchoukuo.
Bulletin of the Central National Museum of Manchoukou 3:1-20. -
R. Endo & R. Shikama - 1942.
- The early Cretaceous lizard genus Yabeinosaurus
from China:
Resolving an enigma. - Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 3
(4). - S. E. Evans, Y. Wang & C. Li -
2005.
- A gravid lizard from the Cretaceous of China and the early history
of squamate viviparity. - Naturwissenschaften. 98 (9). -
Y. Wang & S. E. Evans - 2011.