Dinosaurs A to Z
Proceratosauridae

Yutyrannus

"feathered tyrant"

Generic theropod body-plan outline
You 1.8 m (5.9 ft) tall
Yutyrannus 10 m (33 ft) long
as long as 6 people standing fingertip to fingertip
generic theropod body plan, scaled to length — not a silhouette of Yutyrannus
Length
10 m (33 ft)
Period
Early Cretaceous (125 Mya)
Place
China
Food
Herbivore
Clade
Proceratosauridae
Yutyrannus reconstruction by TotalDino
Reconstruction · TotalDino (CC-BY)

Yutyrannus (meaning “feathered tyrant”) is a genus of proceratosaurid tyrannosauroid dinosaur which contains a single known species, Yutyrannus huali. This species lived during the early Cretaceous period in what is now northeastern China. Three fossils of Yutyrannus huali — all found in the rock beds of Liaoning Province — are the largest-known dinosaur specimens that preserve direct evidence of feathers.

What we know

  • Named by Xu et al., 2012.
  • Body length estimated at about 10 m.
  • Fossils found in China.

What we guess

The reconstruction notes for Yutyrannus — soft tissue, color, behavior — haven't been written up yet. Only the recorded basics above are filled in so far.