Yinlong

hidden dragon

• yin · Chinese (Mandarin) · hidden
• long · Chinese (Mandarin) · dragon

Yinlong means "hidden dragon" in Mandarin Chinese. The name is a reference to the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, parts of which were shot in the area where the fossil was found, and also to the idea of a hidden, undiscovered early ceratopsian. It is a small, early horned-dinosaur relative (ceratopsian), and the type species is Yinlong downsi.

Named by

Xu et al.

Year named

2006

Period

Late Jurassic

Found in

Shishugou Formation, Xinjiang, China

One of the earliest known ceratopsians, a basal member of the group. The species name downsi honours William Downs.