Xiaolin Wang

• PhD
• Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

The Compsognathidae was originally considered an early-diverging clade of coelurosaur theropods. However, recent study suggests that Compsognathidae is not monophyletic. Here, we describe two new compsognathid-like species, Sinosauropteryx lingyuanensis sp. nov. and Huadanosaurus sinensis gen. et sp. nov. from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation...

Pterosaur remains are rare from the lowermost Cretaceous, hampering our understanding of the taxonomic and morphological diversities of pterosaurs during this period. The Lower Cretaceous Tugulu Group in Wuerho, China is renowned for hosting the Wuerho Pterosaurian Fauna (WPF), which has so far yielded numerous fossil remains of two dsungaripterid...

The Wukongopteridae is an important pterosaur clade from the Yanliao Biota, combining features of basal and derived pterosaurs. So far, the Wukongopteridae consists of five species divided into three genera: Wukongopterus lii, Darwinopterus modularis, Darwinopterus linglongtaensis, Darwinopterus robustodens, and Kunpengopterus sinensis. Here we rep...

Ornithocheiroidea was a globally diverse group of pterosaurs during the Cretaceous. However, well-documented ornithocheiroids are highly derived, hampering our understanding on the morphological evolution of this clade. Dsungaripterus weii Young, 1964 from the Lower Cretaceous Tugulu Group (Valanginian) of the Junggar Basin is an iconic early mem...

Among the least studied portion of the pterosaur skeleton is the palate, which tends to be poorly preserved and commonly only visible from one side (the ventral portion). Even in well-preserved specimens, the bones tend to be fused, with the limits of individual palatal elements obscured. To shed new light on this region, we employed advanced X-ray...

The Chaoyangopteridae is a clade of azhdarchoid pterosaurs that stands out in China, particularly in the Jehol Biota, as a Cretaceous group of medium-sized and high-crested pterosaurs. Herein, we describe a new species, Meilifeilong youhao gen. et sp. nov., based on two specimens, one tentatively referred to this taxon. This new species represents...

The Huajiying Formation (135.4–128.7 Ma) of the northern Hebei represents the early stage of the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota in China, yielding many kinds of vertebrates. The only known pterosaur specimen was incomplete and assigned to the Ornithocheiroidea. Here we report a more complete pterosaur specimen, assigned to the Ctenochasmatidae. A new...

The toothed members of Pterosauria display an extremely wide range of tooth morphologies that supported a variety of feeding habits. Histological studies on the teeth of different pterosaur clades are potentially valuable in understanding the development of their tooth diversity. In this study, we used histological sections and scanning electron mi...

Laiyangosaurus youngi was erected as a saurolophine hadrosaurid on the basis of several cranial elements from the Jingangkou Formation, Wangshi Group, Upper Cretaceous of Laiyang, Shandong, China. The postcranial elements of this taxon are described in detail here, providing additional postcranial characteristics to L. youngi. The phylogenetic anal...

As one of the mysteries volant vertebrates, pterosaurs were completely extinct in the K-Pg extinction event, which hampered our understanding of their flight. Recent studies on pterosaur flight usually use birds as analogies, since their shoulder girdle share many features. However, it was also proposed that these two groups may differ in some crit...

Here we report the first dinosaur eggshells found in the Nanhu Gebi of Hami, including Elongatoolithus elongatus and Ovaloolithus oosp. The discovery of these dinosaur eggs not only enlarge the palaeogeographic distribution of elongtaoolithid and ovaloolithid eggs, but also indicate the geological age of egg-bearing strata to be the end of Late Cre...

In Liaoning Province, Northeastern China, the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota records significant evolution and radiation of fauna in terms of diversity, abundance and complexity. The alluvial-to-fluvial Lujiatun and lacustrine Jianshangou beds of the lower Yixian Formation yield exceptionally well-preserved three-dimensional and articulated dinosaur...

Moganopterus zhuiana Lü et al., 2012 was erected as a member of the Boreopteridae, which was questioned by different researchers shortly after the publication. Although the new assignment to the Ctenochasmatidae is widely accepted by pterosaur researchers, some characteristics still require a detailed description. Here, the holotype of this taxon i...

Knowledge about the pterosaur diet and digestive system is limited, and there is little direct evidence in the fossil record. Here, we report two specimens of the wukongopterid Kunpengopterus sinensis , a juvenile and an adult, from the Late Jurassic Yanliao Biota of China with associated bromalites. Both of these concentrations are identified as e...

The Early Cretaceous Hami Pterosaur Fauna in Northwest China preserves a large number of specimens of the sexually dimorphic pteranodontoid pterosaur Hamipterus tianshanensis, including 3D eggs and embryos. During the last decade, several more fossils have been collected in this area, including three somphospondylan sauropod specimens. The first is...

We report the discovery of 114 small pterosaur footprints preserved in a greyish-green fine sandstone slab comprising 57 manus imprints and 57 pes imprints. Due to the chaotic distribution of footprints, the trackways are difficult to recognize. The pes imprints are sub-triangular and enlongate, the metatarsal part is roughly subequal to the digita...

The Wukongopteridae is a transitional clade between the long- and short-tailed pterosaur groups, and at least ten specimens have been studied without a determined juvenile specimen. Here, we described a small-sized Kunpengopterus sinensis, less than half the size of the holotype, which is the smallest specimen in wukongopterids. Based on unossified...

The Tapejaridae compose a pterodactyloid clade of pterosaurs that is one of the most abundant flying reptiles in the deposits of the Early Cretaceous Crato Formation from the Araripe Basin, northeast Brazil. Until now, only one tapejarid specimen from this locality shows a relatively complete vertebral column. Here we describe a second specimen (LP...

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Fossils are nonrenewable natural heritages formed by Mother Nature. After being excavated or exposed, fossils can be destroyed by weathering and water erosion. However, until now, there is very limited research work on fossil conservation. In this work, we focus on the protection of pterosaur fossils found in Hami, which are very sensitive to water...

Pterosaur specimens with complete and well-preserved palatal region are rare. Here we describe new and previously collected specimens of the pterodactyloid pterosaur Dsungaripterus weii that are three-dimensionally preserved and provide new anatomical information for this species. Among the unique features is a lateral process of the pterygoid divi...

Tsintaosaurus spinorhinus is famous for the unique rod-like nasal spine, but there has been a long debate about whether its nasal spine is hollow, since it is difficult to examine the nasal inside through direct observation. Here, we used a high-resolution CT scan to reveal the interior structure of the nasal spine and re-observed the holotype and...

The pterosaur is the first known vertebrate clade to achieve powered flight. Its hyoid apparatus shows a simplification similar to that of birds, although samples of the apparatus are rare, limiting the ability to make an accurate determination. In this study we reveal a new pterosaur specimen, including the first definite basihyal. Through the com...

This study describes a new member of Similifaveoloolithidae from the Upper Cretaceous Zhoutian Formation of Jiangxi, China. The new ootaxon, Wormoolithus luxiensis oogen. et oosp. nov., is erected based on eggs collected from a partial clutch and represents the second oogenera of Similifaveoloolithidae. Wormoolithus shares some unique features with...

Tapejaridae is a clade of toothless pterosaurs typically characterized by a large nasoantorbital fenestra and a premaxillary crest that extends from the anterior to the posterior part of the skull. Sinopterus dongi was the first reported Chinese tapejarid. Another genus “Huaxiapterus” was described, but it was later on determined that “Huaxiapter...

Caudipteridae is a basal clade of Oviraptorosauria, all known species from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota of northeastern China. They were one of the first feathered dinosaur groups discovered, and possessed avian-like pennaceous remiges and rectrices. Their discovery provided significant information on early oviraptorosaurian evolution and the o...

The first clutch of Stalicoolithus shifengensis is described here. This incomplete dinosaur egg clutch in which three nearly complete eggs and two egg prints were preserved was discovered in the red deposits of the Sanshui Formation at a construction site near the sluice of North Village, Dali Town, Nanhai District, Foshan City, Guangdong Province,...

Here we discribe a new ootypes of prismatoolithids found from the Late Cretaceous Jiangjunding Formation in the Laiyang Basin, Shandong Province. On the basis of characters such as elongate ovoids, smooth eggshell surface, relatively thinner eggshell thickness, prismatic eggshell units, slender pores in radial section of eggshell and little pores w...

The Early Cretaceous deposits of the Araripe Basin in northeast Brazil has yielded numerous vertebrate fossils, in which pterosaurs are the predominant tetrapods. Almost all specimens of this extinct group of flying reptiles recovered from this basin come from two stratigraphic units, the Crato and Romualdo Formations, with the pterosaurs from the...

A new ootype collected from the Upper Cretaceous Lijiacun Formation in the Shangdan Basin, Shaanxi Province is described in this paper. Based on general external shape, size, eggshell thickness and honeycomb‐like eggshell microstructure, eggs are referable to the oofamily Faveoloolithidae. Compared with other members of Faveoloolithidae, specimens...

Even more like birds Ecological convergence between pterosaurs and birds is often invoked, but to what degree the two groups share behavior is debated. Wang et al. describe a site with more than 100 fossilized pterosaur eggs that reveals that hatchling pterosaurs were likely not as precocial as previously thought (see the Perspective by Deeming). F...

The Wukongopteridae compose a non-pterodactyloid clade of pterosaurs that are the most abundant flying reptiles in the deposits of the Middle-Late Jurassic Yanliao Biota. Until now, five species of three genera and two additional unnamed specimens have been described. Here we report on a new material, IVPP V 23674, that can be referred to the wukon...

Qiyun Mountain theropod tracks from Anhui Province seem to be the best preserved tracks in several kinds of Late Cretaceous tracks. The study of their sedimentary environment provides evidence for restoring the habitats of dinosaur fauna. All of the tracks are natural theropod casts, preserving Palaeophycus tubularis and Scoyenia sp., which indicat...

A new saurolophine hadrosaurid, Laiyangosaurus youngi gen. et sp. nov. is described and phylogenetically analyzed based on several cranial elements from the Jingangkou Formation, Wangshi Group, Upper Cretaceous of Laiyang, Shandong, China. Laiyangosaurus youngi differs from other members of the saurolophine clade on the basis of a number of autapom...

Well-preserved dinosaur eggs from the Cretaceous Huizhou Formation in the Xiuning Basin, Anhui Province, China, are analysed in this paper. We describe a new oospecies, Similifaveoloolithus qiyunshanensis, based on several distinct characters of external morphology, size, eggshell thickness, and internal microstructure. Radial sections of this new...

In order to determine the incubation temperature of eggs laid by non-avian dinosaurs, we analysed the oxygen isotope compositions of both eggshell carbonate (δ¹⁸Oc) and embryo bone phosphate (δ¹⁸Op) from seven oviraptorosaur eggs with preserved in ovo embryo bones. These eggs come from the Upper Cretaceous Nanxiong Formation of Jiangxi Province, Ch...

Here we briefly review the history of research on the Laiyang dinosaur and dinosaur egg faunas, summarize the contributions of C. C. Young and other elder paleontologists to the discoveries of the Late Cretaceous dinosaurs and dinosaur eggs from Laiyang, and introduce the new discoveries and the advances in the research on the Laiyang faunas. The n...

Pterosaurs are extinct flying reptiles, the first vertebrates to achieve powered flight. Our understanding of the evolutionary transition between basal, predominantly long-tailed forms to derived short-tailed pterodactyloids remained poor until the discovery of Wukongopterus and Darwinopterus in western Liaoning, China. In this paper we report on a...

Cranial crests show considerable variation within the Pterosauria, a group of flying reptiles that developed powered flight. This includes the Wukongopteridae, a clade of non-pterodactyloids, where the presence or absence of such head structures, allied with variation in the pelvic canal, have been regarded as evidence for sexual dimorphism. Here w...

The Yanliao Biota of northeastern China comprises the oldest feathered dinosaurs, transitional pterosaurs, as well as the earliest eutherian mammals, multituberculate mammals, and new euharamiyidan species that are key elements of the Mesozoic biotic record. Recent discovery of the Yanliao Biota in the Daxishan section near the town of Linglongta,...

Eleven species of archaeopterodactyloid pterosaurs have been reported in China, mostly from the Yixian Formation of western Liaoning. The first uncontroversial archaeopterodactyloid from the Jiufotang Formation is described here. A new genus and species, Forfexopterus jeholensis, is erected on the basis of a unique combination of characters and one...

The Wukongopteridae is an important pterosaur group discovered from Yanliao Biota, because it combines character states seen in non-pterodactyloid and pterodactyloid pterosaurs. So far, the Wukongopteridae contains three genera: Wukongopterus, Darwinopterus and Kunpengopterus; representing five species. Here we report on a new specimen, IVPP V 1795...

Phylogeny analysis data of IVPP V 17959 Character list and data matrix.

Pterosaur remains are found in numerous deposits of the world, but most are isolated and fragmentary elements. This is the case of Japan where a small number of specimens from those volant reptiles have been reported. Here, we redescribe the first pterosaur remains from Japan (NSM PV15005) that were found in outcrops of the Upper Cretaceous Yezo Gr...

Daohugou is an important locality of the Jurassic Yanliao Biota, where only two pterosaurs have been described so far (Jeholopterus and Pterorhynchus). Here we report a new genus and species, Daohugoupterus delicatus gen. et sp. nov. (IVPP V12537), from this region, consisting of a partial skeleton with soft tissue. The skull is laterally compresse...

Pterosaurs consist of an extinct group of flying reptiles that show short- and long-tailed species. Among those are the anurognathids whose phylogenetic position has been considered quite controversial. So far, there are about 10 described specimens from the Anurognathidae, from which only a few show the preservation of caudal elements. Here, we re...

Pteranodontoids consist of a diverse and cosmopolitan clade of Cretaceous pterodactyloid pterosaurs. In the Jiufotang Formation (Lower Cretaceous, Aptian) of northeastern China, pterodactyloids are represented by azhdarchoids and pteranodontoids, including istiodactylids and anhanguerians. Here, we describe a new pterosaur from this unit that repre...

The counterpart of a previously described non-pterodactyloid pterosaur with an egg revealed the presence of a second egg inside the body cavity of this gravid female. It clearly shows that pterosaurs had two functional oviducts and demonstrates that the reduction of one oviduct was not a prerequisite for developing powered flight, at least in this...

The Aptian Jiufotang Formation of northeast China is a Konservat Lagerstätte particularly rich in pterosaurs, notably azhdarchoids. Here we describe a new genus and species of toothed pteranodontoid pterosaur, Ikrandraco avatar gen. et sp. nov., based on two laterally flattened specimens. Ikrandraco avatar is diagnosed by a suite of features, inclu...

Supplementary Information

A new species of boreopterid pterosaur from the new fossil locality, Heichengzi, Beipiao, western Liaoning, China allows a reassessment of the Boreopteridae. In this new analysis, three species, Boreopterus cuiae, Boreopterus giganticus n. sp., and Zhenyuanopterus longirostris, are included within the Boreopteridae united by the autopomorphic occur...

Background: The pterosaur record is generally poor, with little information about their populations, and pterosaur eggs are even rarer, with only four isolated and flattened eggs found to date. Results: We report here a population of a new sexually dimorphic pterosaur species (Hamipterus tianshanensis gen. et sp. nov.), with five exceptionally w...

Pterosaurs have been found in eight provinces in China, and their geological ages are from the Middle Jurassic to the Late Cretaceous. We have analyzed the U-Pb zircon ages of two pterosaur localities, Linglongta in Liaoning and Tangshang Formation in Zhejiang, whose ages were disputable. The youngest age of detrital zircons is 150 Ma, which sugges...

A new oogenus and oospecies of the Elongatoolithidae, Undulatoolithus pengi oogen. et oosp. nov., is described on the basis of specimens from the Upper Cretaceous Zhoutian Formation of the Pingxiang Basin, Jiangxi Province, China. The eggs are slightly asymmetrical, paired, and lay radially-oriented in a circular configuration within the clutch, an...

The record of dinosaur eggs from the Upper Cretaceous Wangshi Group in eastern Shandong Province, China shows that the dinosaur species represented by elongatoolithids were present from the middle to the late Late Cretaceous, whereas those represented by the dictyoolithids and spheroolithids became extinct in the middle Late Cretaceous and the new...

We re-described the dinosaur eggs from the Upper Cretaceous Quantou Formation in Changtu, Liaoning Province. Based on the macrostructure of eggs and the microstructure of eggshells: spheroid or near-spheroid eggs, thick eggshell, bamboo-leaves-like or lanceolate wedges in cone, clear inter-wedge spaces, columnar layer composed of more than 4 superi...

辽西建昌玲珑塔地区髫髻山组火山-沉积岩地层中富含燕辽生物群(又称道虎沟生物群)的重要化石, 并记录了若干重要的生物演化事件, 特别是对研究鸟类的起源以及最早鸟类和恐龙祖先的分化均具有关键的意义, 因而其地层时代问题备受关注. 本文对建昌玲珑塔大西山含化石沉积层中的3个凝灰岩样品进行了详细的SIMS锆石U-Pb定年, 获得了160.7±1.7, 159.5±2.3和158.9±1.7 Ma的年龄结果. 根据近年广泛使用的地质年表GTS2004和新近修订的地质年表GTS2012, 由侏罗兽和近鸟龙等构成的燕辽生物群生存于晚侏罗世早期, 从而为最早哺乳动物和最早带毛恐龙的出现年代提供了确凿的同位素年代学证据.

Upper Cretaceous dinosaur egg clutches, single eggs, and countless eggshell fragments have been found in the Pingxiang Basin, Jiangxi Province since 2002. In this paper, the specimens described from the Pingxiang Basin are oblate in shape. The polar axis of this egg is 7.32 cm, the equatorial diameter is 13.81 cm, and its shape index is 189. Outer...

A new type of turtle egg fossil was established: Emydoolithus laiyangensis oogen. et oosp. nov.. Based on its elliptical morphological shape, rigid eggshells, and eggshell characteristics, it is different from other types of round chelonian egg fossils. It is the second chelonian egg fossil found in Cretaceous in China. This discovery shows the Lai...

Dinosaur eggs or fragments are abundant and extensively distributed in China. They can be very informative in biostratigraphic division and correlation of continental strata where other fossils are relatively lacking. Despite remarkable discoveries of vertebrate fossils, particularly dinosaur eggs and skeletons from the middle and Late Cretaceous o...

Dinosaur eggs collected from the Upper Cretaceous Chichengshan Formation in the Tiantai Basin of Zhejiang Province are referable to the oofamily Dictyoolithidae. On the basis of general external shape, size, eggshell thickness, and eggshell composed of 3-4 superimposed slender shell units with a reticulate organization, a new oogenus and two oospec...

Here we describe new types of dinosaur eggs found from the Late Cretaceous Chichengshan Formation in the Tiantai Basin, Zhejiang Province. On the basis of such characters as small spheroid or near-spheroid, columnar layer composed of three zones, the outer zone consisted of stalagmite-like or coralliform secondary shell units, we established two ne...

Despite the great increase in pterosaur diversity in the last decades, particularly due to discoveries made in western Liaoning (China), very little is known regarding pterosaur biogeography. Here, we present the description of a new pterosaur from the Jiufotang Formation that adds significantly to our knowledge of pterosaur distribution and enhanc...

A partial skeleton of a new pterosaur, Jianchangnathus robustus gen. et sp. nov. from western Liaoning, China, is described. The specimen (IVPP V16866) was collected near Linglongta, Jianchang County, whose deposits have a disputed age that range from Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous. The new species shares several features with the non-pterodac...

A nearly complete skull of a new ctenochasmatid pterosaur, Pterofiltus qiui gen. et sp. nov., from the Lower Cretaceous deposits of Liaoning, China, is described here. The specimen (IVPP V12339), was collected from the shale of the lower Yixian Formation (125 Ma) at the Zhangjiagou locality. It has the following combination of characters: about 112...

Some newly discovered postcranial material of Gansus yumenensis are described, adding to our understanding of the skeletal anatomy of this basal ornithurine. Such anatomical features include a laterally exposed sternum with a sickle-shaped keel, the ulnare with small metacarpal incision, complete loss of ungual of the minor digit, and manual phalan...

Gegepterus changae is referred to the Ctenochasmatidae based on an incomplete specimen. The new specimen IVPP V 11972 is assigned to Gegepterus changae according to the unique features in the skull and cervical vertebrae. V 11972 is a subadult individual and further provides the morphological characteristics as the vertebrae, pectoral girdle, etc....

Early Cretaceous vertebrate assemblages from East Asia and particularly the Jehol Biota of northeastern China flourished during a period of highly debated climatic history. While the unique characters of these continental faunas have been the subject of various speculations about their biogeographic history, little attention has been paid to their...

The Early Cretaceous long bony-tailed bird Jeholornis prima displays characters both more basal than Archaeopteryx and more derived, exemplifying the mosaic distribution of advanced avian features that characterises early avian evolution and obfuscates attempts to understand early bird relationships. The current diversity of Jeholornithiformes is c...

Two almost complete long-tailed pterosaurs from the Linglongta, Jianchang County, western Liaoning, China, are described and represent new taxa referred to the non-pterodactyloid clade Wukongopteridae. Kunpengopterus sinensis gen. et sp. nov. differs from other members of this clade mainly by the rounded posterior region of the skull, thick lacrima...

Non-hadrosaurid iguanodontians were the most diverse and abundant group of large-bodied herbivorous dinosaurs during the Early Cretaceous, and were a particularly important component of Laurasian ecosystems. Recent years have seen a dramatic increase in our knowledge of the diversity of this group, with multiple new taxa being described from northe...

Key words Tiantai Basin, Zhejiang Province; Upper Cretaceous; Chichengshan Formation; Elongatoolithidae The English summary can be seen in the attachment.