Xianglong

Xianglong (meaning "flying dragon" in Chinese) is a genus of Cretaceous lizard discovered in the Zhuanchengzi, near Yizhou, Yixian, Liaoning Province of China.

The most notable feature about Xianglong is its bizarre oversized ribs, eight on each side, which were attached to a membrane of body tissue and allowed the lizard to glide.

The ribs of the animal, which functioned as gliding organs, were found in a half-open position, which indicates a post-mortem relaxation of the folded wing.

[2] Xu Xing, a Chinese paleontologist and one of the describers of Xianglong, states that it is possible that it could have glided as far as half a football field, much farther than that of the modern Draco.

Below is the tree recovered by Li et al (2007):[2] Kuehneosauridae Marmoretta Rhynchocephalia Iguanidae Xianglong Agaminae Chamaeleonidae Leiolepidinae Polyglyphanodon Macrocephalosaurus Sineoamphisbaena Dibamidae Amphisbaenia Eublepharinae Gekkoninae (sensu lato) Diplodactylinae Pygopodidae Lacertidae Teiidae Gymnophthalmidae Cordylidae Scincidae Anguidae Xenosaurus Shinisaurus Heloderma Lanthanotus Varanus Aigialosauridae Mosasauridae Dolichosauridae Adriosaurus Pachyrhachis Haasiophis Serpentes However, in a later 2022 publication, Susan E. Evans said that what the describing authors misinterpreted as acrodont dentition was actually the crushed, jagged broken edge of the jaw, rendering its identification as an iguanian doubtful.