Where was the fossil specimen *Xiongguanlong baimoensis* unearthed from the geological record?
Answer
The Xiagou Formation in China
The physical remains of *Xiongguanlong baimoensis* were discovered within the Xiagou Formation located in China. This discovery is significant because this specimen fills a crucial temporal gap spanning approximately 40 to 50 million years in the fossil record of the tyrannosauroid lineage. This geological placement allows paleontologists to trace the evolutionary trajectory from smaller, older tyrannosauroids found in the Barremian stage up to the gigantic predators characteristic of the Late Cretaceous period, offering a nearly complete snapshot of this transitional animal.
Related Questions
Where was the fossil specimen *Xiongguanlong baimoensis* unearthed from the geological record?How did *Xiongguanlong*'s estimated mass compare to the *T. rex* specimen SUE?What morphological descriptor is applied to *Xiongguanlong* due to its skull shape?What proportion of the total skull length did the preorbital region account for in *Xiongguanlong*?Which trait is absent in *Xiongguanlong* nasals but present in *Dilong* and *Eotyrannus*?What characteristic is noted for the serrations on the premaxillary teeth of *Xiongguanlong*?How are the maxillary teeth of *Xiongguanlong* described compared to later tyrannosaurs?How many pairs of pneumatic foramina do *Xiongguanlong*'s cervical centra possess compared to *Tyrannosaurus*?What characteristic of the axial neural spine is shared with more derived tyrannosaurids?Which other longirostrine tyrannosauroid do *Xiongguanlong*'s body proportions resemble?