A Rare Fossilized Wonder: Baby Yingliang, the Best Dinosaur Embryo Ever Found

New Delhi: The Most complete dinosaur baby embryo found in china, it is expected to 66-to 72-million-year-old dinosaur, and they have nicknamed it 'Baby Yangliang' . This has been discovered inside a fossilized egg. Now, it is being displayed in ‘Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum’. First picture shared by palaeologist Steve Brusatte in year 2021. 'He wrote, "Our little one has just arrived. Welcome Baby Yingliang, a gorgeous fossil dinosaur embryo preserved inside its egg! You're looking here at a baby dinosaur, not too long before it would have hatched."

What is Baby Yingliang?

Baby Yingliang is an exceptionally well-preserved embryo of an oviraptorosaur, a type of toothless, feathered theropod dinosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous period (100–66 million years ago) in regions now known as Asia and North America. Unearthed in Ganzhou, Jiangxi Province, within the rocks of the Hekou Formation at Shahe Industrial Park, the embryo measures about 27 centimeters (10.6 inches) from head to tail, curled inside a 17-centimeter (6.7-inch) egg.

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The embryo was found in a "tucking" position—its head bent forward, feet positioned on either side, and back curved—a posture strikingly similar to that of modern bird embryos just before hatching. This discovery provides compelling evidence that this hatching behavior, essential for birds today, first evolved in their dinosaur ancestors. Steve Brusatte described it as “one of the most stunning dinosaur fossils I’ve ever seen,”.

Who Found It First?

The fossil’s journey began in 2000 when the Yingliang Group, a Chinese stone and mining company, uncovered the egg during excavation work in Shahe Industrial Park. Initially unrecognized for its significance, the egg was stored away for about a decade. Between 2010 and 2015, staff at the Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum—where the fossil is now displayed—rediscovered it while sorting through stored collections. Cracks in the shell revealed protruding bones, prompting further investigation.

A team of researchers from institutions including the University of Birmingham, China University of Geosciences, and the University of Edinburgh took up the study. Fion Waisum Ma, a PhD researcher at the University of Birmingham, co-authored the findings and called it "the best dinosaur embryo ever found in history." Paleontologist Lida Xing from China University of Geosciences led much of the fieldwork and analysis, while Steve Brusatte contributed to the interpretation of its significance. Their research was published in the journal iScience on December 21, 2021.