Acanthopholis
Acanthopholis horridus
Pronounced:
ack - an - THOF - oh - liss
Diet:
Herbivore (plant-eater)
Name Means:
"Prickly Scales"
Length: 6
feet (5 m)
Height: 8
feet (2.5 m)
Weight:
unknown
Time:
Middle Cretaceous - 120 m.y.a
Fossil remains for this Dinosaur
have been found in Europe
Discovered in
England in 1867, Acanthopholis was a
plant eater whose
head, neck, back,
and tail were
covered with armored
plates, called
scutes. The scutes
on this dinosaur
were pointy and
would have protected
the animal from
meat-eating
predators.Named by Thomas Huxley, one of the most
prominent scientists and thinkers of 19th
century Europe, Acanthopholis has had a
somewhat controversial history. It was
probably slightly smaller and lighter than
its North American nodosaur relatives.
It is known only from a fragmentary skeleton found
in southern England.
 |
