Pronunciation: drak-o-PEL-tuh
Meaning: Dragon shield
Author/s: Galton (1980)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Mafra, Portugal
Discovery Chart Position: #283
Dracopelta zbyszewskii
When Peter Galton named Dracopelta zbyszewskii in 1980, he described it as a member of Nodosauridae, which are the long-snouted, lightweight ankylosaurs. He also stated that it was discovered at Ribamar but didn't say which one.
There are two Ribamars in the Estremadura region of Portugal: one in the Mafra municipality, which was thought to be Early Cretaceous in age and the other, around 22km from the first, near Lourinhã, which is Late Jurassic. For more than four decades, most experts suspected the latter was more likely, which would make Dracopelta the first ankylosaurid known from that period. However, some sleuthing by Russo and Mateus in 2021 showed that the former location was more accurate but that it was, in fact, misdated. So, Dracopelta is still the first ankylosaur recognized from the Late Jurassic, one of the most primitive known ankylosaurs from any time or place and, at an estimated two meters in length, one of the smallest.
Although initially known from just a chunk of the rib cage, some vertebrae, and a handful of armour scutes, Dracopelta was still one of the better-known early armoured-tank dinosaurs. But based on that meagre material, it could not be classified as anything more specific than Ankylosauria incertae sedis (of uncertain placement), and that would only change with the discovery of better fossils. Fortunately, more remains pertaining to the holotype specimen were found in storage at LNEG (Laboratório Nacional de Energia e Geologia) that lay unprepared and erroneously assigned to the Portuguese stegosaur known as Miragaia, and are currently undergoing preparation.
There are two Ribamars in the Estremadura region of Portugal: one in the Mafra municipality, which was thought to be Early Cretaceous in age and the other, around 22km from the first, near Lourinhã, which is Late Jurassic. For more than four decades, most experts suspected the latter was more likely, which would make Dracopelta the first ankylosaurid known from that period. However, some sleuthing by Russo and Mateus in 2021 showed that the former location was more accurate but that it was, in fact, misdated. So, Dracopelta is still the first ankylosaur recognized from the Late Jurassic, one of the most primitive known ankylosaurs from any time or place and, at an estimated two meters in length, one of the smallest.
Although initially known from just a chunk of the rib cage, some vertebrae, and a handful of armour scutes, Dracopelta was still one of the better-known early armoured-tank dinosaurs. But based on that meagre material, it could not be classified as anything more specific than Ankylosauria incertae sedis (of uncertain placement), and that would only change with the discovery of better fossils. Fortunately, more remains pertaining to the holotype specimen were found in storage at LNEG (Laboratório Nacional de Energia e Geologia) that lay unprepared and erroneously assigned to the Portuguese stegosaur known as Miragaia, and are currently undergoing preparation.
(Zbyszewski's dragon shield)
Etymology
Dracopelta is a combination of the Latin "draco" (dragon) and the Greek "pelta" (shield).The species epithet, zbyszewskii, honours palaeontologist George Zbyszewski.
Discovery
The first remains of Dracopelta were discovered in the Assenta
Member of the Lourinhã Formation (not the Freixial Formation as initially thought) at a roadcut between Barril and Praia da Assenta Sul,
5 km North of Ribamar,
Mafra, Portugal, by George Zbyszewski and Veiga Ferreira on December 22nd, 1964. The holotype (MG 5787, formerly IGM 578) is rib cage with thirteen dorsal (back) vertebrae
and five armour scutes. Pereda-Suberbiola et al. added a hand (MG 3) from the same quarry—retrieved from storage, across the street of Museu Geológico, in
1979 by João Luís Cardo—to the holotype in 2005.
Further holotype material, found at the Laboratório Nacional de Energia e Geologia where it had been erroneously assigned to the Portuguese stegosaur known as Miragaia, is currently undergoing preparation.
The acronym prefix of the specimen numbers have changed down the years, reflecting changes of the institutional name and in the institution that houses the specimen, and were converted to the current "MG" in 1993 when the Serviços Geológicos de Portugal (SGP) within the Museu dos Serviços Geológicos de Portugal (MSGP) was renamed Instituto Geológico e Mineiro (IGM) within the Museu Geológico (MG).
Preparators
Manuel de Matos: preliminary preparation of the holotype.Francisco Costa and Rita Cardos of FCT-NOVA (Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade Nova de Lisboa): preparation of the new-found holotype material at LNEG (Laboratório Nacional de Energia e Geologia).
