Paleontologists working in southern China have identified a previously unknown sauropod dinosaur species. The discovery adds a new member to the long-necked dinosaur group and expands the known record of these animals in the region.

Researchers say the fossil appears to belong to a sauropod group that has never previously been documented anywhere in East Asia. That makes the find significant for understanding how dinosaur diversity was distributed across the continent.

The identification is based on fossil evidence examined by the paleontological team. An artistic reconstruction accompanying the research offers a visual impression of the newly recognized dinosaur, while the discovery itself provides further evidence of previously unrecorded dinosaur diversity in southern China.