Glyptodontopelta

Glyptodontopelta was a robust nodosaurid ankylosaur from the very end of the Cretaceous period in New Mexico. Estimated at around five metres in length, it was a broad, quadrupedal plant-eater that inhabited warm coastal plains. It is primarily identified by its pelvic shield, formed of tightly interlocking, rosette-shaped bony scutes that bear a remarkable resemblance to the shell of extinct giant mammals. As a member of the Nodosauridae family, Glyptodontopelta lacked the heavy bony tail club of ankylosaurids, depending instead on dense defensive plating across its back and flanks to survive alongside formidable predators such as tyrannosaurs until the final mass extinction event.

Its fused pelvic armour closely resembles the protective shell of the extinct giant armadillo Glyptodon.

Where and when

Glyptodontopelta lived in the Late Cretaceous, from 69 to 66 million years ago (Maastrichtian age). Its remains come from United States, in the Ojo Alamo Formation.

The numbers

Length 5 m (estimates run from 4.5 to 5.5 m). Mass about 1.9 t. Hip height about 1.4 m. That is 2.9 human-lengths, or 0.45 of a double-decker bus. These are estimates from fragmentary remains; fields marked estimated by the site are length, mass, hip height.

Compare Glyptodontopelta with a bus Place on the timeline