Residents and visitors to Albuquerque will now have an opportunity to get to know the state’s latest dinosaur discovery up close and personal.
The skull of the huge reptile was found in the northwest part of the state by a crew working with the Bureau of Land Management. They unearthed it in a well preserved condition, and it was soon excavated and taken to the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science for further study.
The skull was found to belong to a brand new species of armored dinosaur that is most closely related to similar species found in the North, mostly in Alberta. It is believed to have been from 15-20 feet long, and to have been a herbivore. It would have had spiked horns on its head and a hammer-like tail. It is thought to be at least 73 million years old. Nobody knows for sure what happened to the rest of its skeleton, and that mystery is not likely to ever be solved.
Named Ziapelta sanjuanensis because it was found in San Juan County, the specimen was examined and studied for three years before being made available for public display.
An artist’s rendering of what this dinosaur may have looked like has been created. Poster printing companies would be able to make professional prints of this image to sell to the public to help raise funds to support the museum.
