Sinosaurus

What it was like

Sinosaurus was a two-legged meat eater with a pair of thin crests on top of its skull, much like Dilophosaurus. It had a long snout with sharp teeth and a notch near the front of its upper jaw.

Its exact relationships are debated, and the two crested genera may not be close relatives.

Its world

It lived in the Early Jurassic, about 201 to 193 million years ago, in what is now China. Its fossils come from the Lufeng Formation, where it probably hunted long-necked plant eaters such as Lufengosaurus and Yunnanosaurus.

How it was found

Young named Sinosaurus in 1940. The type species is Sinosaurus triassicus, named when the rocks were thought to be Triassic. About 15 finds are known.