Name:
Stagonolepis (Greek for "ornamented scale"); pronounced STAG-oh-no-LEP-iss
Habitat:
Forests of Western Europe
Historical Period:
Middle Triassic (235-225 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 8 feet long and 400 pounds
Diet:
Plants
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Unusually small head; body covered by bony plates
About Stagonolepis:
A type of archosaur--the family of terrestrial reptiles that preceded the dinosaurs--Stagonolepis cut a very crocodile-like profile, with two main differences: its teeth were peglike rather than sharp, and it subsisted on plants rather than meat. Clearly, the bony plates lining its back and belly were meant to ward off the carnivorous archosaurs (and early dinosaurs) of the Triassic period.
