Gobisaurus Dinosaur is a genus of herbivorous dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic of western Shandong province in China. It was a medium-sized dinosaur which is renowned for its unusually long legs and long neck. Gobisaurus was about 2.5 meters long, 1.5 meters high and weighed about 85 kilograms or more. It had a long neck and longer forelimbs than hindlimbs. The forelimbs were about 80% of the length of the hindlimbs. The back was low sloping and the tail was very long, about 2 times the length of the body. It had long feet and toes, as well as long finger claws on the forelimbs suggesting some climbing ability. It had two short, blunt horns on its snout.
Gobisaurus was discovered in 1980, in the Luhe Formation, near the town of Linqin in Shandong province, China. It was first described by Chinese paleontologist Dong Zhiming in 1981. It was initially classified as a close relative of prosauropods, a group of primitive saurischian dinosaurs that lived during the Triassic and Early Jurassic Periods. Later studies, however, confirmed that it belonged to the clade of the basal sauropodomorphs, an early branch of the sauropodomorph family tree leading to later true sauropods. Gobisaurus was an herbivorous dinosaur; its diet probably consisted of a variety of prehistoric plants. Due to the shape of its jaws, it could have utilized a wide range of food items.
Gobisaurus Facts :
| Name: | Gobisaurus Dinosaurs |
| Size: | 10 meters |
| Main Facts: | Its long neck and feet show that it could have traveled long distances in search of food, while its four-fingered forelimbs may have enabled it to forage in trees. |
Gobisaurus was most likely a solitary animal. Its long legs and neck allowed it to travel quickly and may have helped it to find food or evade predators. Its low sloping back might have helped it wade and paddle effectively in shallow water. Gobisaurus is thought to have given birth to live young. Its long neck and shoulder structure suggest that it may have been able to stand on two legs and reach higher food sources. Gobisaurus is significant because it is one of the earliest examples of a true sauropodomorph dinosaur. Its long legs and neck, as well as its quadrupedal posture, are features commonly seen in later sauropodomorphs. This suggests that the evolutionary path of the sauropods may have started with Gobisaurus.
The Luhe Formation, where Gobisaurus was found, also yielded other species of dinosaurs, such as Erketu, Shansisaurus, Yandusaurus and Chungkingosaurus, making it an important region for dinosaur research. Gobisaurus is also significant because it helps us understand the evolutionary relationship between the saurischian and ornithischian dinosaurs. Its quadrupedal posture and long neck are seen in later sauropodomorphs, and its horned and long-snouted skull structure is seen in later ornithischians. This helps to show that the two groups may have been related during the middle to late Jurassic period.
