Zhucheng in Shandong province is known locally as dinosaur¹ 恐龙 city and has been the scene of several important finds since the 1960s.

But researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences say a fossil field 化石场 discovered during mining explorations 矿产开采 earlier this year appears to be the largest in the world.

3000 dinosaur bones have been dug up from a single pit 坑 just a few hundred metres long and several thousand others have been unearthed² 挖掘 at a number of sites nearby.

State media say the find includes tyrannosaurus 暴龙 bones as well as what could be the largest duck-billed 鸭嘴恐龙 dinosaur ever excavated³ 挖掘.

Most of the fossils dated so far go back to the late Cretaceous period白垩时代, which is around the time when dinosaurs⁴ became extinct 灭绝.

The scientists say the discovery of so many remains⁵ in a small area could provide clues 线索 as to how they died out.

Detailed⁶ research on the fossil find is due to be published later next year but further excavations⁷ will take place in the meantime and the researchers are hoping to find even more dinosaur remains 遗迹.