Mandschurosaurus


Mandschurosaurus is a genus of hadrosaurs based on material from the Upper Cretaceous of China.

History of discovery

M. amurensis is based on a poorly preserved and incomplete skeleton collected by Russian scientists in 1914 from the banks of the Amur River. It was the first dinosaur genus named from China, and a mounted skeleton is on display at the Central Geological and Prospecting Museum in St. Petersburg. However, much of the skeleton is plaster. Regardless, the remains represent a large hadrosaurid. There has been some debate regarding the validity of this genus. Brett-Surman first considered it a nomen dubium, though some later workers have continued to see it as a valid taxon. Most recently, Horner et al. listed the type species as a nomen dubium. The holotype material was initially referred to the genus "Trachodon", but later reassigned to a new genus by Riabinin.
Over the years, three species have been placed within this genus: Mandschurosaurus amurensis, M. mongoliensis, and M. laosensis. Brett-Surman considered M. mongoliensis a distinct genus, which he named Gilmoreosaurus. Horner et al. considered M. laosensis a nomen dubium. This leaves only Riabinin's original species, M. amurensis, as a possibly valid taxon.