Suborder "Scelidosauria"

Ancestral Armoured Dinosaurs Small to large ancestral armoured types. The back was studded with large bony scutes. There are two families; the Scutellosauriadae and the Scelidosauridae family Scutellosauridae
small bipedal Jurassic forms;
length about a metre family Scelidosauridae
small early ancestral forms - late Triassic to early Jurassic - usual length about a metre

family Scutellosauridae

Scutellosaurus dawleri was a small lightly built ancestral armoured type. It was a fast sprinter, relying on agility to ascape predators, with a covering of armour plates (scutes) as well. It was originally clasisfied with the Fabrosaurs, from which it is no doubt descended. Echinodon becklessi would seem to be another member of this family. No doubt likely that other poorly known small primitive dinosaurs will fit in this group as well. Skutellosaurus as it may have appeared in life

Skutellosaurus as it may have appeared in life

Stats

family Scutellosauridae

ecological niche: small terrestrial armoured herbivores

chronological range: Early to Late? Jurassic

known species: 1 definite, 1 possible

name	author	age	location	fossil remains	length	weight	systematic position
Echinodon becklessi	Owen, 1861	Tithonian	England	3 fragmentary skulls, scutes	60 cm		Scutellosauridae?
Scutellosaurus dawleri	Owen, 1868	Pliensbachian	Arizona	2 fragmentary skeletons, scutes	1.2m	10kg	Scutellosauridae

reconstructed Scutellosaurus skeleton

family Scelidosauridae

Early Jurassic		Middle Jurassic
Scutellosauridae_==	Scelidosauridae_==	Nodosauridae
		Huayangosauridae

reconstructed Scelidosaurus skeleton
Scelidosaurus skeleton
the armour plates are shown in colour

Scelidosaurus The scelidosauridae are primitive armured forms, similiar to but larger than Scutellosaurus and transitional stage between that form and the larger, heavily armored ankylosaurs. May or may not be related to the stegosaurs as well. The back was studded with large bony scutes. Length 3 to 4 metres. Early Jurassic of Europe.

Stats

family Scelidosauridae

ecological niche: medium-sized to large terrestrial armoured herbivores

chronological range: Early Jurassic

known species: 1 definite, 1 or 2 possible

Scelidosauridae and related forms of uncertain position

name	author	age	location	fossil remains	length	weight	systematic position
Lusitanosaurus liassicus	Lapparent & Zbyszewski, 1957	Sinemurian	Portugal	skull fragment, teeth			Scelidosauria (Scelidosauridae???)
Scelidosaurus harrisonii	Owen, 1868	Sinemurian	England	2 skeletons	3-4m	200-250kg	Scelidosauridae
Tatisaurus oehleri	Simmons, 1965	Hettangian/ Sinemurian	China	dentary	?1-2m		Scelidosauridae??? or new family of Stegosauria?

Tatisaurus oehleri Simmons 1965
Dark Red Beds, Lower Lufeng Series, Yunnan, China
late Hettangian- early Sinemurian?
Tatisaurus is the earliest known member of the dinosaurian order Thyreophora, a group that included various types of armoured dinosaurs. It is still not very far removed from its Fabrosaur ancestors, but within a few million years Tatisaurus, or a form like it, evolved into large armoured quadrepeds, the Scelidosaurs.

Scelidosaurus harrisonii Owen 1861
Lower Lias, Charmouth, England
Nearly complete skull with asociated postcrania
Length: 3.5 metres
Scelidosaurus has also been reported from Tibet [David Lambert, A Field Guide to Dinosaurs, p.173]. A skull fragment called Lusitanosaurus liassicus, from Portugal, may also belong to this genus.

"Juvenile Scelidosaurus"
Lower Lias, Charmouth, England
Nearly complete skull with asociated postcrania; juvenile.
seems to be a different species

skeleton reconstructions from

DINOSAURS AND THE HISTORY OF LIFE - GEOLOGY V1001x site - Professor Paul Eric Olsen.

back to Predentata (Ornithischia) page

Links

Abelisauridae - Thescelosaurus!

Dinosauricon

Ceratosauria Mikko's phylogeny site

Jurassic Gallery - fantastic artwork by M. Shiraishi. By Japanese and English

Molnar, R., E., Problematic Theropoda: "Carnosaurs". 306-317, in Weishampel, D. B., Dodson, P., & Osmólska, H. (eds.), The Dinosauria University of California Press, Berkley, Los Angeles, Oxford, 1990

Norman, D., B., Problematic Theropoda: "Coelurosaurs". 280-305 in Weishampel, D. B., Dodson, P., & Osmólska, H. (eds.), The Dinosauria University of California Press, Berkley, Los Angeles, Oxford, 1990

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page uploaded 12 May 1999
modified 14 July
converted to css format 4 January 2001

content by M.Alan Kazlev