Dinosaurs / Cretaceous / Valdosaurus
Valdosaurus
Cretaceous val-doh-SAWR-us, “Wealden lizard”
Valdosaurus was a small, graceful ornithopod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Europe, with key remains uncovered on the Isle of Wight and mainland England. Living around 140 to 125 million years ago, this creature reached an estimated two to three metres in length and weighed roughly as much as a medium dog or small goat. Because it is known primarily from femora and associated pelvic elements, its overall appearance is inferred by comparing it to closely related forms like Dryosaurus. It was an obligate biped possessing long, gracile hind legs built for rapid running away from contemporary predators such as Baryonyx and Neovenator, foraging on low foliage across ancient floodplain environments.
It is one of the few well-documented European members of the dryosaurid family.
Where and when
Valdosaurus lived in the Early Cretaceous, from 140 to 125 million years ago (Berriasian-Barremian age). Its remains come from United Kingdom, in the Wessex Formation.
The numbers
Length 2.5 m (estimates run from 2 to 3 m). Mass about 35 kg. Hip height about 0.9 m. That is 1.5 human-lengths, or 0.22 of a double-decker bus. These are estimates from partial skeleton; fields marked estimated by the site are length, mass, first ma, last ma, hip height.