Scientists have identified the first dinosaur fossils from a remote western section of the Bayan Gobi Formation in China’s Inner Mongolia, expanding the known geographic range of dinosaur fossils in this important Early Cretaceous rock unit.
Fossil 208GPV01 excavated from the Bayan Gobi Formation, Ingen-Ezhinaki Basin, China. Image credit: Li others., doi: 10.1016/j.hisbio.2026.100044.
This new dinosaur specimen was unexpectedly discovered during a copper mineral survey conducted by a team of Chinese geologists.
The fossil, cataloged as 208GPV01, was pulled from a drill core at a depth of 473 meters (1,500 feet) near Guaizihu in the Ingen-EzInaki Basin.
Bayan Gobi layer This is an Early Cretaceous continental deposit from northern China, mainly exposed within the Yingen-Ezhinaki Basin in western Inner Mongolia,” said researcher Dr. Lida Shin of the China University of Geosciences and the Dinosaur Odyssey Science Museum and colleagues.
Their fauna shares similarities with the roughly contemporary fauna of the western Liaoning province, suggesting that, although there are some differences, both may belong to the radiation range of the Jehol biota.
Fossils of 208GPV01 date back to the Early Cretaceous period, approximately 115 million years ago.
It mainly consists of the proximal caudal vertebrae and some associated elements.
“208GPV01 consists of a sacral rib, four caudal vertebral centers, six caudal neural arches, several transverse processes, and an ossified tendon,” the researchers said.
model of Psittacosaurus sp. Based on the skin and pigmentation patterns of a specimen in the Senckenberg Museum, Germany. Image credit: Jakob Vinther others.
Scientists say the specimen belongs to the ornithischian family, a group of plant-eating dinosaurs with the tails of birds.
To determine the fossil’s closest relative, they used geometric morphometry to compare its proportions to a number of other ornithischian species.
The analysis showed that the proportions of the vertebrae in the specimens were most similar. Psittacosaurusan early horned dinosaur species that was common throughout East Asia during the Cretaceous period.
However, due to limited documentation, it is not possible to classify this fossil into a specific genus or species, and so far it has been classified only as an undetermined ornithischian.
The Bayan Gobi Formation has previously produced several notable dinosaurs, including hadrosauroids. Penelopognathus Weychampelliceratopsians Psittacosaurus sibiricusand Alvarez Sauroid Banix uratensis.
However, almost all such finds were found in the eastern part of the Ingen-Ezinaki Basin.
“208GPV01 is the first published dinosaur record from the Bayan Gobi Formation in the western Ingen-Ezinaki Basin, thereby expanding the geographic range of dinosaur fossils in this horizon,” the authors said.
their paper Published in the Journal on September 5, 2026 Earth’s history and biodiversity.
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Tianyu Li others. The first dinosaur discovered from the Lower Cretaceous Bayan Gobi Formation in the West Ingen-Ezhinaki Basin, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China. Earth’s history and biodiversitypublished online on September 5, 2026. doi: 10.1016/j.hisbio.2026.100044
Source: www.sci.news
