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Hylaeosaurus

Say it: hy-LEE-oh-SOR-us

Name means: “forest lizard”1

Ate: PlantsArmoured dinosEarly Cretaceous

Hylaeosaurus was an armoured dinosaur that lived about 136 million years ago in England. It had long spikes on its shoulders and a body covered in bony plates. It was one of the first dinosaurs ever discovered and helped scientists understand what dinosaurs were.1 2

Lived

139 to 110 million years ago5

Early Cretaceous

Fossils found in

England, United Kingdom, and possibly France and Germany1 5

Food

Plants1 2

Length

5 m1

estimate

Weight

700 kg to 2 tonnes1 3

range of estimates

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 1.5 cars

as long as 5 dogs nose to tailas long as 28 bananas end to endas heavy as 67 big dogsas heavy as 400 watermelons

How big was Hylaeosaurus compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Hylaeosaurus was one of the first three dinosaurs ever named by scientist Richard Owen in 1842, along with Iguanodon and Megalosaurus.1

Its fossils were discovered in 1832 when a gunpowder explosion blasted open a quarry face in Tilgate Forest, England.1

Hylaeosaurus had at least three long, curved spines on its shoulder, the longest being 42.5 centimetres (about 16.7 inches).1

It was the first ankylosaur (armoured dinosaur) ever found.1

Only one good skeleton has been found, and much of its body is still unknown to scientists.1

The name Hylaeosaurus means 'forest lizard' because it was found in the Tilgate Forest area.1

AI-made picture of Hylaeosaurus — An AI-made picture of how Hylaeosaurus might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Hylaeosaurus

?How big was Hylaeosaurus?

Hylaeosaurus was about 5 metres (16 feet) long, though some estimates range from 3 to 6 metres (10 to 20 feet). It weighed about 2 tonnes (2.2 short tons).1 2

?What did Hylaeosaurus eat?

Hylaeosaurus was herbivorous, meaning it ate plants. It had a beak used to crop low-lying vegetation.1 2

?When did Hylaeosaurus live?

Hylaeosaurus lived about 136 million years ago, during the Early Cretaceous period, specifically the Valanginian stage.1 2

?Where was Hylaeosaurus found?

Hylaeosaurus fossils were found in England, specifically in the Grinstead Clay of West Sussex. Possible remains have also been reported from France, Germany, Spain, and Romania.1 2

?Was Hylaeosaurus a dinosaur?

Yes, Hylaeosaurus was a dinosaur, specifically an armoured ankylosaurian dinosaur. It was one of the first three dinosaurs named by Richard Owen in 1842.1 4

?Did Hylaeosaurus have spikes?

Yes, Hylaeosaurus had at least three long, curved spines on its shoulder, the longest being 42.5 centimetres (16.7 inches). It also had armour plates on its body.1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Hylaeosaurus
Named by: Mantell 18335
Group: Armoured dinos
Family / clade: Nodosauridae5
Classification: Ornithischia > Ankylosauria > Nodosauridae > Thyreophora5
Age of the rocks: 139 to 110 million years (Berriasian / Albian)5
Rock formations: Tunbridge Wells Sand, Bückeberg, Weald Clay5
Countries: United Kingdom, Germany, France5
Fossil records: 10 in the Paleobiology Database5
Discovery: Hylaeosaurus was discovered by Gideon Mantell in 1832 after a quarry explosion revealed its bones in Tilgate Forest, England. Mantell named it in 1833.1
Still debated: Scientists are not sure whether Hylaeosaurus was a nodosaurid or a more primitive ankylosaurid, because its skeleton is incomplete.1

Where the facts come from

Hylaeosaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
Hylaeosaurus | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
Hylaeosaurus armatus | Dinosaur Database by DinoAnimals.com (dinoanimals.com)
Hylaeosaurus | dinosaur genus | Britannica (britannica.com)
Hylaeosaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

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