Patagopelta

Say it like this: “pat-uh-GOH-PEL-tuh”

Patagopelta cristata

Patagopelta ate plants and walked on four legs. It lived in the Late Cretaceous. Bones have been found in Argentina.

Quiz me on Patagopelta

When: Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago
Named in: 2022 · Riguetti, F.; Pereda-Suberbiola, X.; Ponce, D.; Salgado, L.; Apesteguía, S.; Rozadilla, S.; Arbour, V.
Hip height: Not established
Length: 2 m · 7 ft
Weight: Not established
Found in: Argentina · Allen
Food and walking: Herbivore · Four legs
Kind: armored dinosaur · Ankylosaur
Family branch: Nodosauridae

The story in short

Patagopelta was formally named in 2022 by F. Riguetti and colleagues. The name means “patagonian shield.”

Fossils referred to Patagopelta date to the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian), roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago. Finds come from Argentina, including the Allen Formation. It was a herbivore and walked on four legs.

Published estimates put Patagopelta 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

Anoplosaurus

Anoplosaurus curtonotus

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