“Let me present you the dinner of the Yangchuanosaurus. The small and distant relative to the mighty Stegosaurus the Huayangosaurus. Yep the Chinese did it again and called it along the area it was found.”
– Isaac Clement
The Hyayangosaurus is one of the oldest stegosaurian dinosaur ever found. It lived during the Middle Jurassic period, around 165–160 million years ago, in what is now China. The Huayangosaurus as many of the other found in China dinosaurs means “Huayang Lizard,” or in other words it bears the name of the region where it was found.
It was relatively small in size compared to its direct relatives, like the Stegosaurus. The average measures were something like 4 to 4.5 meters (13–15 feet) in length and weighed around 500 kg (1,100 lbs).
The Huayangosaurus had bony plates similar to those of the stegosaurian dinos placed across the back. However, the plates were smaller and less elaborate than those of later stegosaurs which were much more evolved.
It also had sharp spikes on its tail, likely used for defense against predators, similar to the “thagomizer” of Stegosaurus.
Name Meaning
Diet
Lenght
Weight
Huayang Lizard
Herbivorous 🌿
4 to 4.5 meters (13–15 feet)
