Ankylosaurus

Description

Ankylosaurus is agenus of armored dinosaur. Fossils of Ankylosaurus have been found in geological formations dating to the very end of the Cretaceous Period, between about 68–66 million years ago, in western North America, making it among the last of the non-avian dinosaurs.

Ankylosaurus is the largest known ankylosaurid dinosaur, estimated to have been up to 6.25 m (20.5 feet) long, 1.5 m (4.9 feet) wide, and 1.7 m (5.6 feet) tall at the hip. This length has been proposed by American palaeontologist Kenneth Carpenter, and is based on the largest known skull (specimen NMC 8880), which is 64.5 cm (25.4 inches) long and 74.5 cm (29.3 inches) wide. The smallest known skull (specimen AMNH 5214) is 55.5 cm (21.9 inches) long and 64.5 cm (25.4 inches) wide, and this specimen is estimated to have been 5.4 m (17.7 feet) long and around 1.4 m (4.6 feet) tall. Other authors have proposed a body length of 7 m (23 feet), 8–9 m (26.2–29.5 ft), or more than 9 m (29.5 feet). The weight of the animal has been estimated at 6 tonnes (13,000 lb).

More Information

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Fact file

• Pronounced: an-KIE-loh-sore-us
• Meaning of name: stiff lizard
• Length: 7m
• Weight: 4000kg – 7000kg
• Teeth: grinding teeth with a horny beak at the front
• Diet: herbivorous
• Food: plant material
• How it moved: on 4 legs
• When it lived: Late Cretaceous
  (74 – 67 million years ago)
• Found in: Canada, USA

Taxonomic details

• Taxonomy: Dinosauria, Ornithischia, Genasauria, Thyreophora, Ankylosauromorpha, Ankylosauria, Ankylosauridae, Ankylosaurus
• Named by: Brown (1908)
• Type species: magniventris