Timurlengia is an extinct type of dinosaur that belongs to the family of tyrannosaurs. It lived during the Late Cretaceous period, around 92 to 90 million years ago, in what is now Uzbekistan.
The scientific name for this dinosaur is Timurlengia euotica. The name “Timurlengia” comes from Timurlenk, a historical figure from Central Asia, and “euotica” means “well-eared” in Greek, referring to its well-developed hearing abilities.
Timurlengia is significant because it gives us insight into how tyrannosaurs evolved. It existed before the famous giant tyrannosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex. This dinosaur had a smaller size, about 3 to 4 meters long, and weighed between 170 to 270 kilograms.
Timurlengia had interesting features. It had advanced sensory abilities, meaning it could see, smell, and hear well. Its ear structure suggests it could hear low-frequency sounds, which might have helped it communicate.
Fossils of Timurlengia are quite rare, but the ones we have include a braincase and other isolated bones. The first piece discovered was a braincase in 2004, and in 2016, scientists formally named the species Timurlengia euotica.
Timurlengia was likely a fast and agile hunter. Its teeth were shaped like blades, perfect for slicing meat. This indicates that it probably hunted smaller animals.
In summary, Timurlengia helps us understand the early evolution of the larger tyrannosaurs. It showed that even before they grew to gigantic sizes, these dinosaurs had already developed key features that would later help them become the top predators of their time.