Safari Ltd Safari Ltd. Wild Guanlong

Product DescriptionGuanlong is the earliest known tyrannosauroid - the group of dinosaurs that includes Tyrannosaurus rex. This crested species is known only from northwestern China, where it hunted small prey during the Late Jurassic, 160 million years ago. Guanlong is a moderately sized two-legged carnivorous dinosaur about ten feet long and three feet tall. It has a long tail, and long arms with three-fingered hands. It has a distinctive crest on the top of its skull, and sharp claws and teeth to help it to catch and kill small prey. This model is 4.88 inches long and 2.54 inches high. It has dark plumage on its body, but also a bright red head crest to help it attract mates. Guanlong was discovered in the Wukaiwan area of the Jungaar Basin, north-western China. It was named by Chinese palaeontologist Xu Xing and colleagues in 2006. It was given the name Guanlong, which means ‘crowned dragon’, in reference to the stunning ornamental crest on top of its head. Guanlong’s delicate head crest projects upwards and backwards from the snout, and is larger and more exaggerated than any other carnivorous dinosaur. It was also filled with air to keep it light. The crest was probably used for display and may have been colourful. The species name wucaii stems from the Chinese ‘wucai’, meaning ‘five colours’. This refers to the rainbow coloured rocks in which the fossil bones of Guanlong were found. As the earliest known tyrannosauroid, Guanlong provides information about the early evolution of the group that led to Tyrannosaurus rex. The infamous T. rex may have been massive, but 90 million years earlier, its Chinese cousin Guanlong was far more modestly sized - about as long as a cow. Only the bones of Guanlong are known, but other tyrannosauroids (Dilong, Yutyrannus) have evidence that they were covered in feathers. Therefore, it is possible that Guanlong had feathers too.Box Contains1 x Guanlong Figurine