Sauropelta

Sauropelta had two rows of large, pointed spines on each side of its neck. The spines pointed backwards and upwards, and their bases were fused together, which limited neck movement.2

Its body was covered in bony armor, including small nodules and larger conical scutes. Over the hips, the armor plates locked together tightly to form a 'sacral shield'.2

Sauropelta is one of the earliest known nodosaurids. Most of its fossils come from rocks that are about 108.5 million years old.2

The first Sauropelta fossils were collected by famous dinosaur hunter Barnum Brown in the 1930s. But the dinosaur was not named until 1970, when John Ostrom gave it the name Sauropelta.2

Sauropelta lived in forested floodplains near rivers. It ate conifers and cycads, since grasses had not yet evolved.2

A nearly complete skeleton with its armor still in place is on display at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.2