Scientists have found a species of ankylosaurs, herbivorous dinosaurs of the ornithischian group that inhabited the Earth 142-65 million years ago.
Experts from the Natural History Museum involved in the discovery of the dinosaur called Vectipelta barretti on the British Isle of Wight have explained that, although it had a fearsome appearance due to its “blade-like spiked armour”, it fed exclusively on plants.
Ankylosaurs were large herbivores with broad, flat bodies and short legs. They were related to stegosaurs and had large bony plates on their bodies, which they probably used to protect themselves from predators.
Twenty-nine different species of dinosaur have been discovered on the Isle of Wight to date, belonging to various prehistoric periods. In 2021, two new kinds of large predatory dinosaurs were found on the same island.
