Tuojiangosaurus

Tuojiangosaurus was a large stegosaur that lived in Late Jurassic China, discovered in Sichuan Province during construction work. Growing to around seven metres in length and weighing over two tonnes, it bore a striking resemblance to North American Stegosaurus, but with notable anatomical differences. Down its neck, back, and tail stood seventeen pairs of narrow, pointed plates that transitioned into triangular spikes toward the rear. At the end of its tail, two pairs of elongate spines formed a lethal defensive weapon against contemporary predators like Sinraptor. Its skull was long and low, housing simple leaf-shaped teeth adapted for chewing soft ferns and low foliage. With heavily built limbs and a downward-sloping posture, Tuojiangosaurus is the most completely known Asian stegosaur.

Its back bore seventeen pairs of pointed, pear-shaped plates alongside two pairs of tail spikes.

Where and when

Tuojiangosaurus lived in the Late Jurassic, from 161 to 155 million years ago (Oxfordian age). Its remains come from China, in the Upper Shaximiao Formation.

The numbers

Length 6.8 m (estimates run from 6.5 to 7 m). Mass about 2.4 t. Hip height about 2.1 m. That is 4 human-lengths, or 0.61 of a double-decker bus. These are estimates from near-complete skeleton; fields marked estimated by the site are length, mass, hip height.

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