Anoplosaurus

Say it like this: “an-OP-lo-SAWR-us”

Anoplosaurus curtonotus

Anoplosaurus ate plants and walked on four legs. It lived in the Early Cretaceous. Bones have been found in the United Kingdom.

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When: Early Cretaceous (Albian) · roughly 113.2 to 100.5 million years ago
Named in: 1879 · Seeley, H. G.
Hip height: Not established
Length: 2 m · 7 ft
Weight: Not established
Found in: the United Kingdom
Food and walking: Herbivore · Four legs
Kind: armored dinosaur · Ankylosaur
Family branch: Nodosauridae

The story in short

Anoplosaurus was formally named in 1879 by H. G. Seeley. The name means “unarmed lizard.”

Fossils referred to Anoplosaurus date to the Early Cretaceous (Albian), roughly 113.2 to 100.5 million years ago. Finds come from the United Kingdom. It was a herbivore and walked on four legs.

Published estimates put Anoplosaurus at a length near 2 m.

On the family tree it sits in Nodosauridae, among the armored dinosaurs.

Close relatives

Acantholipan

Acantholipan gonzalezi

Late Cretaceous (Santonian) · roughly 85.7 to 83.6 million years ago

Animantarx

Animantarx ramaljonesi

Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) · roughly 100.5 to 93.9 million years ago

Borealopelta

Borealopelta markmitchelli

Early Cretaceous (Albian) · roughly 113.2 to 100.5 million years ago