Jurassic Dinos editorial · Updated · Source-based review
What was Gobisaurus?
Gobisaurus was an armoured dinosaur from Cretaceous China. Its large skull is the best-studied part of the animal. It is generally placed among early ankylosaurids, but the available material does not provide a complete, securely documented armour arrangement.
What makes the fossil distinctive?
The shape of the skull, openings and tooth rows allows comparison with Shamosaurus and other ankylosaurs. Similar external head shapes do not erase differences in individual bones. Whole-body reconstructions necessarily contain more inference than a drawing of the preserved skull.
Where was it found and how was it named?
The fossil was discovered during Sino-Soviet expeditions around 1959–1960 but formally named only in 2001. It spent years in collections and appeared in exhibitions before receiving a valid scientific description. A label used informally in a display is not automatically a formally established genus name.
What can we infer, and what remains uncertain?
The age and rock assignment have been interpreted differently in published accounts, with both Early and Late Cretaceous proposals. We retain the broad Cretaceous period rather than presenting a disputed precise date as settled. This is a case where checking the locality’s geology is just as important as comparing the skull.
Why is no precise age given here?
Published interpretations of the fossil’s formation and age differ. A broad Cretaceous placement avoids implying more precision than the evidence supports.
How can you check the evidence?
The Paleobiology Database record catalogues Gobisaurus under Ankylosauridae. Its linked bibliography identifies this research starting point: M. K. Vickaryous, A. P. Russell, and P. J. Currie, X.-J. Zhao. 2001. A new ankylosaurid (Dinosauria: Ankylosauria) from the Lower Cretaceous of China, with comments on ankylosaurian relationships. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 38:1767-1780. Open the bibliographic record. A catalogue entry establishes the source trail; it does not independently verify every later illustration or behavioural claim.
Use the dated genus overview to follow the references behind the discovery and anatomy discussed above. When sources disagree, compare which specimen and rock layer each author studied. A reconstructed whole animal can combine original bones with comparisons to relatives; those two kinds of evidence should not be confused. The account above explains the particular limits that matter for Gobisaurus, rather than supplying unsupported size, speed or lifespan figures.
Read the image and keep exploring
The Gobisaurus museum mount reconstructs a complete armoured dinosaur from a more limited published fossil record. A displayed specimen or skeletal mount can include restored parts. Its appearance should be read alongside the original specimen description.
Compare Bissektipelta, Ankylosaurus. Find more names in the G index and explore ornithischian field notes. The glossary explains unfamiliar fossil terms.
Quick answers
- Where have Gobisaurus fossils been found?
- The discoveries discussed here come from China. Modern place names describe discovery locations, not a complete ancient geographic range.
- When did Gobisaurus live?
- It is placed in the Cretaceous period. See the discovery discussion for qualifications about the particular rock layers and dating.
- Where can I compare Gobisaurus with related dinosaurs?
- Follow the related field notes below. Comparisons explain shared anatomy; they do not imply that all the animals lived together.
