Chinese scientists have uncovered a rare, nearly complete skeleton of a dinosaur known as a hadrosaur in Inner Mongolia.
The specimen, which contained more than 300 pieces comprising about 90 percent of a complete skeleton, was first discovered in 2012 in the Urad Black Banner area of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Extensive excavation of the site to retrieve the fossil pieces began in June of 2013, the Global Times reported.
A hadrosaur is is a type of dinosaur that lived during the late Cretaceous period, around 100-66 million years ago. Also dubbed as "duck-billed" dinosaur because of its uniquely shaped snout, the herbivorous hadrosaur is believed to have been widespread in Asia, Europe, North and South America and even Antarctica. This has made the type a fairly common fossil find.
However, finding a nearly complete skeleton is considered to be rare, according to Xu Xing of the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology. With a complete skull, cervical vertebrae, limbs, and tail section, the specimen is considered the most complete to have been found in Inner Mongolia in the last 20 years, Shanghai Daily reported.
Inner Mongolia is well-known as a hotbed for dinosaur fossil discoveries in recent years.
Based on the measurements made on the fossil pieces, researchers said that the specimen is about 8 meters long and 5 meters tall. The team also surmised that it was an adult.
A team of ten workers is currently restoring the skeleton in Chengguan Town, Bayamui City, with the work expected to be completed in October.