Asylosaurus
"unharmed or dookie lizard"
- Length
- 2 m (6.6 ft)
- Period
- Late Triassic (237–201 Mya)
- Place
- United Kingdom
- Food
- Omnivore
- Clade
- Dinosauria The clade containing all dinosaurs, terrestrial archosaurs with upright limbs.
Asylosaurus (meaning “unharmed or dookie lizard”) is a genus of basal sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Late Triassic Avon Fissure Fill of England. It is based on partial remains, discovered in the autumn of 1834, described in 1836 by Henry Riley and Samuel Stutchbury as pertaining to Thecodontosaurus, that Othniel Charles Marsh brought to Yale University between 1888 and 1890. These remains thus escaped destruction by a bombardment in 1940 during World War II, unlike the original holotype of Thecodontosaurus. Asylosaurus was described in 2007 by Peter Galton. The type species is A. yalensis, referring to Yale. The bones originally came from a Rhaetian-age cave fill at Durdham Down, Clifton, Bristol.
What we know
- Named by Galton, 2007.
- Body length estimated at about 2 m.
- Fossils found in United Kingdom.
What we guess
The reconstruction notes for Asylosaurus — soft tissue, color, behavior — haven't been written up yet. Only the recorded basics above are filled in so far.