OAN’s Sophia Flores
4:24 PM – Monday, June 19, 2023
A brand-new species of dinosaur has been discovered on the Isle of Wight, an island in the English Channel.
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For the first time in 142 years, an armored dinosaur, known to be a part of the wider plant-eating Ankylosaur family, has been located by researchers. The Vectipelta barretti, according to its fossils, had a spiked set of armored plates. Researchers believe that the Vectipelta barretti is related to the Ankylosaur species, one that would roam freely between Europe and Asia between 66 million and 145 million years prior.
This particular discovery marks only the second time an armored dinosaur has been found on the island. The first one that was unearthed was the Polacanthus foxii in 1865.
The newly discovered dinosaur was named after Professor Paul Barrett, who is known as the longtime authority on dinosaurs at Britain’s Natural History Museum in London.
“I’m flattered and absolutely delighted to have been recognized in this way,” Professor Barrett said in a statement. “I’m sure that any physical resemblance is purely accidental.”
Scientists believe that the latest discovery is pivotal into understanding better how dinosaurs went extinct.
This latest discovery will be “crucial to understanding if such an event occurred and how life recovered,” according to researchers who identified of Vectipelta barretti.
The findings will be on display at the Isle of Wight’s dinosaur museum as part of a collection and parts of the dinosaur will be exhibited as early as this summer.
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By: OAN
