An isolated dinosaurian prootic with possible stegosaurian affinities (Dinosauria: Thyreophora) from the Upper Jurassic Qigu Formation of the southern Junggar Basin, NW-China

Abstract

An isolated right prootic of a dinosaur is described from the lower Qigu Formation (Upper Jurassic) of Liuhuanggou, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, People's Republic of China. It is phenetically closest to the prootics of well-known stegosaurids, such as Stegosaurus and Kentrosaurus. Based on this resemblance as well as the co-occurrence of diagnostic stegosaurian material in the same assemblage, the element may represent a stegosaur. If correctly identified, it would be the third stegosaurian record from the southern Junggar Basin.