Open Paleo

Scelidosaurus

Owen, 1859 SKEL-i-do-SAWR-us /ˌsɛlɪdoʊˈsɔːrəs/

From Greek 'skelis'/'skelidos' (rib of beef, hind leg) + 'sauros' (lizard), intended to mean 'limb lizard'; the name references the animal's robust limbs.

199.5–192.9 million years ago Sinemurian, Early Jurassic
Early Jurassic stages

Scelidosaurus is a genus of herbivorous armored ornithischian dinosaur from the Jurassic of England.

Under dispute

Scelidosaurus is a well-known basal thyreophoran. Most analyses recover it as the sister taxon of Eurypoda (Stegosauria plus Ankylosauria), basal to both (Sereno, 1986; Maidment and colleagues, 2008; Fonseca and colleagues, 2024). Norman (2020) instead placed it on the line leading to Ankylosauria, after the divergence of Stegosauria.

Diagnosis

  1. Large and hollow limb-bones
  2. Femur with third inner trochanter
  3. Metacarpal and phalangial bones adapted for movement on land

Species

Scelidosaurus harrisonii Owen, 1859

Type species

Named for James Harrison, the quarry owner of Charmouth, Dorset, who discovered and collected the first specimens and donated them to Professor Richard Owen.

Lectotype
NHMUK PV R 1111 , Natural History Museum
Material
A nearly complete skull with an associated, largely articulated postcranial skeleton.
Horizon
Black Ven Marl Member, Charmouth Mudstone Formation, Sinemurian, Early Jurassic , 199.5–192.9 million years ago
Locality
The Spittles-Black Ven, between Charmouth and Lyme Regis, Dorset, United Kingdom

Notable specimens

  • BRSMG CF2781

    Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery exceptional preservation

    A series of eight caudal vertebrae preserving an envelope of soft tissue with an epidermal layer over the scutes. The authors concluded the osteoderms of all basal armored dinosaurs were covered in a tough, probably keratinous skin layer. Referred only as cf. Scelidosaurus sp.

    Martill et al. (2000)

  • BRSMG CE12785

    Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery Found 1985 by Simon Barnsley, David Costain, and Peter Langham exceptional preservation

    A partial skeleton including a very complete skull and skin impressions, excavated at Charmouth in 1985 and sold to the Bristol Museum.

    Ensom (1989)

ICZN cases

References

  1. Martill, D. M.; Batten, D. J.; Loydell, D. K. (2000). A new specimen of the thyreophoran dinosaur cf. Scelidosaurus with soft tissue preservation. Palaeontology 43(3): 549-559. doi:10.1111/j.0031-0239.2000.00139.x martill2000a
  2. Ensom, P. C. (1989). New scelidosaur remains from the Lower Lias of Dorset. Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society 110: 165-167. ensom1989a
  3. Owen, R. (1859). Palaeontology. The Encyclopaedia Brittanica, or Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, and General Literature (8th Edition) 17: 91-176. Adam and Charles Black. owen1859a
  4. Charig, A. J.; Newman, B. H. (1992). Scelidosaurus harrisonii Owen, 1861 (Reptilia, Ornithischia): proposed replacement of inappropriate lectotype. Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 49: 280-283. charig1992a
  5. International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (1994). Opinion 1788. Scelidosaurus harrisonii Owen, 1861 (Reptilia, Ornithischia): lectotype replaced. Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature 51: 288. iczn1994a
  6. Norman, D. B. (2019). Scelidosaurus harrisonii from the Early Jurassic of Dorset, England: cranial anatomy. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 188(1): 1-81. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlz074

    Modern redescription of the lectotype (NHMUK PV R 1111); source of the holotype material account.

    norman2019a
  7. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Ornithischians. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the hip height estimate, and the appearance features.

    jones2026a
  8. Maidment, S. C. R.; Norman, D. B.; Barrett, P. M.; Upchurch, P. (2008). Systematics and phylogeny of Stegosauria (Dinosauria: Ornithischia). Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 6(4): 367-407. Informa UK Limited. doi:10.1017/S1477201908002459

    Stegosauria phylogeny recovering Scelidosaurus as sister taxon to Eurypoda.

    maidment2008a
  9. Norman, D. B. (2020). Scelidosaurus harrisonii from the Early Jurassic of Dorset, England: the dermal skeleton. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 190(1): 1-53. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlz085

    Describes the dermal skeleton of Scelidosaurus.

    norman2020a
  10. Sereno, P. C. (1986). Phylogeny of the bird-hipped dinosaurs (Order Ornithischia). National Geographic Research 2(2): 234-256.

    Recovered Scelidosaurus as sister taxon to Eurypoda, basal to Stegosauria and Ankylosauria

    sereno1986a
  11. Norman, D. B. (2020). Scelidosaurus harrisonii (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) from the Early Jurassic of Dorset, England: biology and phylogenetic relationships. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 191(1): 1-86. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa061

    Placed Scelidosaurus on the stem line to Ankylosauria, after Stegosauria's divergence.

    norman2020b
  12. Fonseca, A. O.; Reid, I. J.; Venner, A.; Duncan, R. J.; Garcia, M. S.; Müller, R. T. (2024). A comprehensive phylogenetic analysis on early ornithischian evolution. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 22: 2346577. doi:10.1080/14772019.2024.2346577

    Recovered Scelidosaurus outside Eurypoda.

    fonseca2024a