Zhuchengtyrannus
- Name meaning: Zucheng tyrant
- Length: 12.2-12.8 m (41-42.7 ft )
- Weight: 6-7.8 tons
- Height: 3-4.6 m (10-14 ft)
- time period: 73.45-67 mya
- habitat: Asia
- skull length: 120-130 cm (3.9-4.03 ft )
- bite force: 12000 psi
- Speed: 22-30 mph
Zhuchengtyrannus (meaning "Zhucheng tyrant") is an extinct genus of large carnivorous theropod dinosaur known from the Late Cretaceous period of Shandong Province, China. It is a tyrannosaurine tyrannosaurid, and contains a single species,Zhuchengtyrannus magnus.
It is one of the largest known carnivorous theropods, and the holotype has been estimated to have been 10–12 m (33–39 ft) in length and up to 6 short tons (5.4 t) in weight. The holotype dentary is slightly smaller than that of most specimens ofTyrannosaurus rex and slightly bigger than most of Tarbosaurus bataar, but significantly smaller than the corresponding bones of the largest Tyrannosaurus specimen ("Sue"). Zhuchengtyrannus can be distinguished from all other tyrannosaurines by a single autapomorphy, the presence of a horizontal shelf on the lateral surface of the base of the ascending process of the maxilla, and a rounded notch in the anterior margin of the maxillary fenestra. Zhuchengtyrannus also possesses a ventral margin of the antorbital fenestra that lies well above that of the ventral rim of the antorbital fossa. Additionally, the total length of the maxillary fenestra is more than half the distance between the anterior margins of the antorbital fossa and fenestra. Unlike the contemporaneous Tarbosaurus, Zhuchengtyrannus lacks a subcutaneous flange on the posterodorsal part of the jugal ramus of the maxilla, and a ventrally convex palatal shelf that covers the bulges of the roots of the rear teeth in medial view.
A second tyrannosaurid dentary (ZCDM V0030) and maxilla (ZCDM V0032) have also been collected at Zangjiazhuang quarry. Even though they were not associated with one another, both specimens are different from other tyrannosaurids, including Zhuchengtyrannus, implying the existence of at least one additional tyrannosaurid from the quarry. Apart from the tyrannosaurid material, specimens of Sinoceratops, hadrosaurids (probably Shantungosaurus) and ankylosaurs were recovered from it. Zhuchengtyrannus was found in an area that was a floodplain in the Cretaceous period and contains one of the highest concentrations of dinosaur bones in the world.
It is one of the largest known carnivorous theropods, and the holotype has been estimated to have been 10–12 m (33–39 ft) in length and up to 6 short tons (5.4 t) in weight. The holotype dentary is slightly smaller than that of most specimens ofTyrannosaurus rex and slightly bigger than most of Tarbosaurus bataar, but significantly smaller than the corresponding bones of the largest Tyrannosaurus specimen ("Sue"). Zhuchengtyrannus can be distinguished from all other tyrannosaurines by a single autapomorphy, the presence of a horizontal shelf on the lateral surface of the base of the ascending process of the maxilla, and a rounded notch in the anterior margin of the maxillary fenestra. Zhuchengtyrannus also possesses a ventral margin of the antorbital fenestra that lies well above that of the ventral rim of the antorbital fossa. Additionally, the total length of the maxillary fenestra is more than half the distance between the anterior margins of the antorbital fossa and fenestra. Unlike the contemporaneous Tarbosaurus, Zhuchengtyrannus lacks a subcutaneous flange on the posterodorsal part of the jugal ramus of the maxilla, and a ventrally convex palatal shelf that covers the bulges of the roots of the rear teeth in medial view.
A second tyrannosaurid dentary (ZCDM V0030) and maxilla (ZCDM V0032) have also been collected at Zangjiazhuang quarry. Even though they were not associated with one another, both specimens are different from other tyrannosaurids, including Zhuchengtyrannus, implying the existence of at least one additional tyrannosaurid from the quarry. Apart from the tyrannosaurid material, specimens of Sinoceratops, hadrosaurids (probably Shantungosaurus) and ankylosaurs were recovered from it. Zhuchengtyrannus was found in an area that was a floodplain in the Cretaceous period and contains one of the highest concentrations of dinosaur bones in the world.