Sauropods-50-foot-long 'dragon' dinosaur species discovered in China

Sauropods, a category of dinosaurs that includes the Diplodocus, typically had necks that comprised up to a third of their body size. A new species of dinosaur described in a recent Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology had a neck that could stretch up to 25 feet long, which is half its body length. The dino has been named Qijianglong (pronounced "CHI-jyang-lon"), which means "dragon of Qijiang." Its bones were discovered near China's Qijiang City by construction workers in 2006. It belongs to a family of sauropods known as mamenchisaurids. Miraculously, when the beast was unearthed, its head was still attached to its vertebrae, something extremely unusual in the paleontology world. "It is rare to find a head and neck of a long-necked dinosaur together because the head is so small and easily detached after the animal dies," explains Tetsuto Miyashita, a University of Alberta paleontologist who, along with former master's student Lida Xing and professor Philip Currie, discovered the new species. RELATED STORIES Secret of 'Jurassic Park' raptor sounds? Tortoise sex New flamboyant dinosaur named after speedy god Biggest-ever dinosaur unearthed? Some researchers think so Also of note is that the dinosaur's vertebrae were filled with air, much like the skeletons of birds. This made their necks fairly lightweight for their massive size (and no doubt, kept -READ MORE LINK-http://www.cnet.com/news/50-foot-long-dragon-dinosaur-species-discovered-in-china/