World’s Most Armored Dinosaur

It was the world’s most armored dinosaur, until evolution did something strange.

Fossils found in Morocco have revealed that the armored body of Spicomellus was also covered in bone spikes that reached nearly a meter in length. The preserved remains are dated to more than 165 million years ago. They also show that the animal lost some of its armor as it evolved.

Spicomellus had a multitude of plates and spikes all over its body. These included meter-long neck spikes, huge spikes projecting upwards over the hips, and a range of long, blade-like spikes.

Spicomellus was a type of ankylosaur, which were heavily armored herbivores with bony skins similar to turtles. They lived from the Middle Jurassic to the Late Cretaceous period but went extinct 66 million years ago when a comet wiped out most dinosaurs.

Sometimes described as ‘walking coffee tables’, ankylosaurs were four-legged, squat and under 10 feet in length.

Usually, species become better at defending themselves over time. But this discovery showed that ankylosaurs lost some of their protection, despite their environment being more dangerous in the Cretaceous period. This particular fossil is the oldest known ankylosaur. Scientists thought that later species might have inherited similar features, but they didn’t. Therefore, experts believe the fearsome variety of spikes may have actually been used for attracting mates and showing off to rivals rather than for defense.

In later species, the spikes are gone, having been replaced by flat plates, which were likely used only for defense. The scientists speculate that as larger and more fearsome predators evolved, ankylosaur armor became simpler, less showy, and more defensive. This suggests they wanted to draw less attention to themselves.

The end of Spicomellus’ tail hasn’t been found, but some of the vertebrae have been fused together, which suggests it had a club or similar tail weapon.

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/this-was-world-s-most-armoured-dinosaur-then-evolution-did-something-strange/ar-AA1LkPbP?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=9c063d459322482f930a164f96dd0e06&ei=68