Crichtonpelta

Say it like this: “KRY-ton-PEL-tuh”

Crichtonpelta benxiensis

Crichtonpelta ate plants and walked on four legs. It lived in the Early Cretaceous · Late Cretaceous. Bones have been found in China.

Quiz me on Crichtonpelta

When: Early Cretaceous · Late Cretaceous (Albian · Cenomanian · Turonian) · roughly 113.2 to 89.8 million years ago
Named in: 2015 · Arbour, V. M.; Currie, P. J.
Hip height: 0.8 m · 3 ft
Length: 3–4 m · 10–13 ft
Weight: 600 kg · 1,323 lb
Found in: China · Sunjiawan
Food and walking: Herbivore · Four legs
Kind: armored dinosaur · Ankylosaur
Family branch: Ankylosaurinae

The story in short

Crichtonpelta was formally named in 2015 by V. M. Arbour and P. J. Currie. The name honors a person tied to the fossil or its study.

Fossils referred to Crichtonpelta date to the Early Cretaceous · Late Cretaceous (Albian · Cenomanian · Turonian), roughly 113.2 to 89.8 million years ago. Finds come from China, including the Sunjiawan Formation. It was a herbivore and walked on four legs.

Published estimates put Crichtonpelta at a length near 3–4 m, hips about 0.8 m high, and a body mass around 600 kg.

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

Close relatives

Akainacephalus

Akainacephalus johnsoni

Late Cretaceous (Campanian) · roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago

Ankylosaurus

Ankylosaurus magniventris

Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago

Anodontosaurus

Anodontosaurus lambei

Late Cretaceous (Campanian · Maastrichtian) · roughly 83.6 to 66 million years ago