Spicomellus: Oldest & Most Elaborately Armored Ankylosaur
Spicomellus: Oldest & Most Elaborately Armored Ankylosaur
During excavations in Morocco, researchers unearthed extensive fossil remains of Spicomellus, a heavily armored dinosaur that lived roughly 165 million years ago.
This Jurassic Period dinosaur, approximately 4 meters long and weighing one to two tonnes, represents the oldest known ankylosaur, a group of tank-like, plant-eating dinosaurs.
Key features include:
🟠Long, sharp spikes fused directly to its ribs;
🟠A bony collar around the neck with outward-projecting spines – some nearly one meter long, resembling golf-club-sized weapons;
🟠A back covered in short spikes and a pelvic shield with large spines above the hips;
🟠Fused tail vertebrae suggest it likely had a tail weapon (club or spikes), though none were preserved.
This extravagant armor likely served for both defense and attracting mates.
Despite the absence of a skull, the partial skeleton provided significant insights. Previously known only from a single rib fragment, Spicomellus is now recognized for its extreme ornamentation.
The presence of these fused tail vertebrae indicates that tail weapons evolved in ankylosaurs 30 million years earlier than previously thought. While ankylosaurs and stegosaurs both arose in the Jurassic, ankylosaurs survived until the end of the age of dinosaurs.
Spicomellus challenges the assumption that early members of dinosaur groups had plain designs, revealing the early development of elaborate features in ankylosaurs.
Footage taken from the journal Nature
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