Period of life:
140-100 MYA
Era/period:
Cretaceous
Habitat:
China (East Asia)
Length:
12

Description
Kelmayisaurus is a theropod from the Chinese Lianmuqin Formation that lived in the early Cretaceous period more than 100 million years ago. Estimates of the lizard size of the are very approximate, since the find is extremely fragmentary. But the most realistic length of the theropod based on a single true specimen is about 10 meters in length. Kelmayisaurus moved on two strong hind legs. Based on the structure of the relatives of its species, it can be assumed that the upper limbs of the lizard were relatively small. Most likely, the skull was oblong. One of the most important features in the identification of Kelmayisaurus is a rather deep groove in the front of the dental bone. It is known that it possessed curved teeth of medium size, perfectly suited for hunting small and herbivorous dinosaurs. Like other theropods, Kelmayisaurus had a long tail needed for balancing. The Latin name of this dinosaur comes from the ancient Greek word for "lizard" and "Kalamay". The latter is an alternative name for the western Chinese city of Karamay, where the theropod was discovered and described in 1973.
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