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Guanlong

By , About.com Guide

Guanlong (Wikimedia Commons)

Name:

Guanlong (Chinese for "crown dragon"); pronounced GWON-long

Habitat:

Woodlands of Asia

Historical Period:

Late Jurassic (160 million years ago)

Size and Weight:

About 10 feet long; weight unknown

Diet:

Meat

Distinguishing Characteristics:

Small size; large crest on head

About Guanlong:

The earliest tyrannosaur yet to be discovered, Guanlong (the name, "crown dragon," comes from this meat-eater's prominent crest) roamed Asia during the late Jurassic. Like other early tyrannosaurs--such as Eoraptor and Dilong--Guanlong was nothing special in terms of size, only about a fourth as large as T. Rex (which lived about 90 million years later). This points to a common theme in evolution, the development of plus-sized animals from small progenitors.

Oddly, when Guanlong was discovered, in 2006, paleontologists found two specimens lying on top of one another--one thought to be about 12 years old, and the other about 7. What's weird is that, as far as researchers can tell, the dinosaurs didn’t die at the same time, and there's no sign of a struggle--so how did they wind up buried together?

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