FACT SHEET: ankylosaurus NAME: ANKYLOSAURUS (an-KEE-loh-SAW-rus), meaning: "Stiff Lizard" SIZE: 30 feet long, 4 feet tall (the size of a school bus), weighed 3-4 tons TYPE OF DIET: Herbivore (plants that grew low to the ground) WHEN: Cretaceous period (70 - 65 million years ago) WHERE: Bolivia (South America), Montana (North America), Alberta (Canada) Ankylosaurus was the largest of all the armored dinosaurs. It lived about 70 to 65 million years ago. It grew to be about 30 feet long and 4 feet tall. It weighed between 3 and 4 tons. Ankylosaurus grew thick, bony plates over its entire body. Its head was also covered with bony plates and spikes. There were even bony plates around its eyelids. The plates grew on top of each other, so Ankylosaurus could move around without showing its skin. In addition to its spikes, Ankylosaurus had a heavy club at the end of its tail. It carried its tail straight out from behind, off the ground, even though it was heavy. When a predator came too close, Ankylosaurus would whip its deadly tail around. Only its belly was soft and unprotected. If a predator wanted to attack Ankylosaurus, it would have the best chance if it flipped this heavy dinosaur onto its back. Like a turtle, Ankylosaurus had a hard time getting back on its feet again. This is how it got its name, which means “stiff lizard”. This dinosaur was an herbivore, meaning that it only ate plants. Since it wasn’t very tall, it mostly ate plants that grew low to the ground. It was probably too heavy to stand up on its hind legs to reach for food on trees. Ankylosaur trackways have been found in Bolivia, South America. Paleontologists studying these footprints think that this dinosaur could run pretty quickly, even though it had so much heavy armor. Ankylosaurus, along with the rest of the other dinosaurs, died 65 million years ago, when many, many dinosaurs died out at the same time. Dinosaur Days TM © 2010 Distant Train, inc. (www.distanttrain.com) all rights reserved.