Sauropelus was a genus of nodosaurid dinosaur that originated in the Early Cretaceous of North America. It was an armored dinosaur that was a relative of Ankylosaurus. It was discovered in places such as Wyoming, Colorado and Wyoming. In 1970, it was discovered and named by John H. Ostrom and Grant E. Meyer. The name means \"lizard skin\" and refers to the armor that forms on the skin as in modern crocodiles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The armor was in the form of many osteoderms \u300a or sometimes called shields \u300b which varied in different sizes on different parts of the body except its lower part. The neck, back and tail consisted of rows of oval plates, side to side there were spines and spikes, and large circular plates on the hips. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The entire upper part was strongly protected from carnivores, meaning that turning it over was the only way to injure it. It had a narrow skull, massive jaws, small leaf-shaped teeth on the cheeks and a horny toothless beak. It had an exceptionally long tail; in fact, half the length of its body was actually a tail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This huge animal was a herbivore, which means that it ate plants. It consumed an enormous amount of lowland plant material to sustain itself. It walked on all fours and could run at a \"decent trot\". Sauropelta was found to live in herds; it possibly lived together with Pleurocoelus, Tenontosaurus, Acrocanthosaurus, and false-throated Deinonychus herds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sauropod was estimated to be about 25 feet long and weighed more than 3 tons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n