Dracopelta zbyszewskii lived in what today is Portugal, about 155 million years ago. This dinosaur was a herbivore belonging to the order Ornithischia. This ankylosaurid was 2 meters long, being a small sized "armored dinosaur", and is the most ancient member of the family, thought to have started to evolve at around 122 million years ago. Because it was an ankylosaurid it may have bore a big bone mass in the tip of the tail for defense purposes.
The fossil vertebrae were discovered by Peter Galton in 1980 nearby Ribamar, a locality close to Ericeira. Today you can see the remains of this ancient being at Museu Geológico in Lisbon, home to many other interesting specimens of all types, including mammals, crocodiles and other dinosaurs.
No comments:
Post a Comment