Anodontosaurus Pronunciation
Picture, name meaning, and how to say Anodontosaurus. Free guide for kids and parents.
How to Pronounce Anodontosaurus
an-oh-DON-toh-SOR-us
ALL CAPS = stressed syllable
What does Anodontosaurus mean?
toothless lizard with armored body
Name Roots
"an-"
without, not: Greek prefix 'an' meaning absence of something
"odonto"
tooth: from Greek 'odous' meaning tooth
"saurus"
lizard: from Greek 'sauros' meaning lizard or reptile
Fun Facts
- ✓The name Anodontosaurus means 'toothless lizard' but that is only half true: it had a toothless beak at the front of its mouth and small peglike teeth further back, which confused early paleontologists who first examined the skull.
- ✓Anodontosaurus survived right up to the very end of the Cretaceous period, meaning it was alive during the final six million years before the asteroid impact that wiped out non-avian dinosaurs 66 million years ago.
- ✓The tail club of ankylosaurs like Anodontosaurus was formed from fused vertebrae and interlocking tendons that acted like a rigid handle, making the knob at the end a true biological wrecking ball that could generate forces of up to 4,000 newtons.
- ✓Anodontosaurus is known from two species: A. lambei, named in honor of paleontologist Lawrence Lambe, and A. inceptus, described decades later as scientists reanalyzed fossils from Alberta collections.
- ✓The Horseshoe Canyon Formation where Anodontosaurus lived was a lush coastal floodplain environment with forests, rivers, and seasonal flooding, meaning this armored giant shared its world with hadrosaurs, ceratopsians, and small feathered theropods.
