This Utah natural history museum artist shows an ankylosaurus, a squat plant eater covered with bone armor from his spiny head to his clubbed tail, which was unveiled at Salt Lake City Museum. The ankylosaurus, Latin name Akainacephalus johnsoni, roamed south of Utah on all fours about 76 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous. (Natural History Museum of Utah via AP minus
This Utah natural history museum artist shows an ankylosaurus, a squat plant eater covered with plaster. a bony armor from his thorny head to his clubbed tail, which was unveiled Au … more
Photo: Natural History Museum of Utah, AP
This undated photo from the Utah Museum of Natural History shows the skull heavily adorned with an ankylosaurus, a squat-eaten plant-eater with bone armor from his spiny head to his pummeled tail, before being unveiled at the Salt Lake City Museum. The ankylosaurus, Latin name Akainacephalus johnsoni, roamed south of Utah on all fours about 76 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous. (Utah Natural History Museum by AP minus
This undated photo from the Utah Museum of Natural History shows the skull strongly adorned with an ankylosaurus, a squat plant eater covered with a bony armor from his thorny head to his tail, before … more
Photo: Natural History Museum of Utah, AP
This photo from the Natural History Museum of Utah, conducted in 2009, shows members of the team who searched the tail club of an ankylosaurus, an eater of squat covered with bone armor from his thorny head to his clubbed tail in the Grand Staircase. Escalante National Monument in southern Utah. The ankylosaurus, Latin name Akainacephalus johnsoni, roamed south of Utah on all fours about 76 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous. (Natural History Museum of Utah by AP minus
This photo from the Natural History Museum of Utah in 2009 shows members of the excavation team from club of an Ankylosaurus tail, a squat eater covered with his thorny head, his clubbing … more
Photo: Natural History Museum of Utah, AP
In this undated photo, curator Bill Thomas moves the skeleton of an Ankylosaurus, a squat plant eater covered with bone armor from his thorny head to his clubbed tail, before his unveiling at the Natural History Museum of Utah. Salt Lake City. The ankylosaurus, Latin name Akainacephalus johnsoni, roamed south of Utah on all fours about 76 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous. (Natural History Museum of Utah via AP) minus
In this undated photo, Bill Thomas exhibition planner moves the skeleton of an ankylosaurus, a plant eater squat covered with bone armor from his thorny head to his clubbed tail, before his unveiling at … more
Photo: Natural History Museum of Utah, AP
Armored dinosaur with prickly head unveiled at the Utah Museum
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) – A dinosaur covered with a bony armor from his thorny head to his pummeled tail was unveiled in a museum of Utah.
The species of ankylosaurus was a stocky plant eater that roamed south of Utah on all fours about 76 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous. At that time, the desert state was hot and humid, covered with slow watercourses and large evergreens, said paleontologist Randall Irmis
. would have been about to size for a tall human. He probably used his distinctive tail and armor for protection, although they could have been used for the show.
The fossil unveiled Thursday at the Natural History Museum of Utah was discovered in 2008 in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, The Fossil was Discovered on the Kaiparowits Formation, a thick layer Sandstone which also has vast coal reserves inside a sprawling national monument that was one of two Donald Trump ordered downsizing last year. The place where the fossil was found remains within the boundaries of Grand Staircase-Escalante, although areas that are now out of bounds also have fossil potential, Irmis said.
Researchers expected to have a smooth bone armor on his skull. Ankylosaurs, but were surprised to find evidence that he had a spiky armor on his head and muzzle, similar to the fossils found in Asia.
Paleontologists believe that animals migrated to North America several times Crossing a land bridge
The species was named Akainacephalus johnsoni to recognize Randy Johnson, retired chemist and museum volunteer who spent hundreds hours to thoroughly release the skull from the rocks and debris.
With a complete skull, the fossil also includes the distinctive tail club, large parts of its vertebral spine and parts of its body armor, including two neck rings and spiked armor plates the museum said in a statement.
