Yuanmouraptor (meaning Yuanmou County robber) is an extinct genus of metriacanthosaurid theropod that lived in the Middle Jurassic Zhanghe Formation of China. The type species is Yuanmouraptor jinshajiangensis.
Discovery and Naming[]
The holotype (LFGT-ZLJ0115) was found in March 2006 in outcrops of Zhanghe Formation in a farm. It was first mentioned in a 2014 newsletter in the Hong Kong Science Museum. As of a 2025 description, it is currently on display in Lufeng World Dinosaur Valley Museum. In 2025, it was described as a new species of metriacanthosauridae by Zou. The generic name is named after Yuanmou County, while the specific name is named after Jinsha River.
Description[]
It is described as a medium-sized theropod. The neural arch is fused to the centrum, and it indicates that it is a subadult, so the specimen could have been larger. The automorphies of it are anterior process of the postorbital that is sheet-shaped, a ventral ramus of the postorbital with a twisted trough going over the outer surface, and the elongated epipophyses on the cervical vertebrae.
Classification[]
It is classified as a member of Metriacanthosauridae. Its sister taxon is Xuanhanosaurus.
Gallery[]
