Scelidosaurus selihdoʊ-SƆːRUHS

Scelidosaurus (; with the intended meaning of “limb lizard”, from Greek /σκελίς meaning ‘rib of beef’ and sauros/σαυρος meaning ‘lizard’) is a genus of herbivorous armoured ornithischian dinosaur from the Jurassic of England.

Scelidosaurus lived during the Early Jurassic epoch, during the Sinemurian to Pliensbachian ages around 191 million years ago, at the time when Europe formed an island archipelago. Its fossils have been found in the Charmouth Mudstone Formation near Charmouth in Dorset, England, and these fossils are known for their excellent preservation. Scelidosaurus has been claimed as one of the earliest complete dinosaurs, and is among the most completely known dinosaur of the British Isles. Despite this, a modern description only materialised in 2020. After initial finds in the 1850s, comparative anatomist Richard Owen named and described Scelidosaurus in 1859.