The structure and orientation of the posterior extremity (tail club) of the caudal vertebrae of Mamenchisaurus hochuanensis Young and Chao, 1972 from the Upper Jurassic Shangshaximiao Formation has been analyzed to determine the tail club function using Finite Element Analysis. Of the four caudal vertebrae composing the tail club, the second largest (C"1") was probably the most proximal, and is fixed with the preceding sequence of the caudal vertebrae, whereas the smallest (C"4") is free and forms the termination of the tail club. Our analysis also suggests that the tail club is more efficient in lateral swinging rather than up-and-down motion, and that the best region for the tail club to impact is at the spine of the largest of the four caudals (C"2"), with a maximum load for impact at about 450 N. The tail club of Mamenchisaurus hochuanensis probably also had limitations as a defense weapon and was more possibly a sensory organ to improve nerve conduction velocity to enhance the capacity for sensory perception of its surroundings.
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