Unearthed in Morocco: The 165-Million-Year-Old Ankylosaur With a Bizarre, Never-Before-Seen Look

Ever stumble across something so bizarre it makes you question if evolution just took a wild coffee break? Meet Spicomellus afer—the dinosaur that’s rewriting the “weirdest creature” rulebook with spikes like it’s preparing for a medieval joust. This 13-foot spike-covered oddball, rocking a three-foot-long spiky collar like some prehistoric bling, roamed Morocco’s Atlas Mountains 165 million years ago, and trust me—it’s nothing like the dinos you’ve seen in those Jurassic Park marathons. Paleontologists kept scratching their heads as each new fossil dropped, wondering if their eyeballs were playing tricks. How did a plant-eater end up decked out like the ultimate armored party crasher, and what does that say about ankylosaur evolution? Buckle up—this ain’t your grandma’s dino story. LEARN MORE

“This dinosaur is totally unlike anything else that we have ever seen.”

Matthew DempseyA reconstruction of what Spicomellus afer would have looked like.

After discovering the most complete skeleton of the ankylosaur known as Spicomellus afer back in 2022 and 2023, paleontologists have just described what this prehistoric creature looked like — and it was more bizarre than they ever imagined.

The plant-eating dinosaur, which roamed the Atlas Mountains of Morocco 165 million years ago, was covered in long spikes, but it was the fearsome collar around its neck that set it apart from its closest relatives. Now, this latest specimen is revealing more about how ankylosaurs evolved.

The Strange Appearance Of ‘Spicomellus Afer’

In 2019, Susannah Maidment, a paleontologist at London’s Natural History Museum, received a dinosaur rib from a fossil dealer in Cambridge. There were spines on the rib that were fused directly to the bone, something Maidment had never seen before.

The rib alone was enough to identify a new species of dinosaur: Spicomellus afer, the oldest known ankylosaur. However, Maidment wanted to know more. She knew the bone had initially been found near Boulemane, Morocco, so she and a team of researchers returned to the area in hopes of unearthing additional specimens.

And in 2022 and 2023, they found what they were looking for. The more complete Spicomellus skeleton revealed what the ankylosaur had looked like — and paleontologists were shocked by what they discovered.

The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, LondonThe rib bone that was first used to identify Spicomellus.

“When we originally named Spicomellus, there were doubts that it was an ankylosaur at all,” Maidment recalled in a statement from the Natural History Museum. “Now, not only can we confirm beyond a doubt that this interpretation was correct, but Africa’s only known ankylosaur is far weirder than anyone imagined.”

The 13-foot-long dinosaur, which roamed Morocco over 165 million years ago, was studded with spikes along its entire body. However, its most unique feature was a collar of three-foot-long spikes around its neck.

“Spicomellus is one of the strangest dinosaurs that we’ve ever discovered,” Richard Butler, the co-author of a paper that was just published in Nature, stated. “It’s utterly unlike any other found anywhere else in the world.”

New Insight Into The Evolution Of Ankylosaurs

The dinosaur’s unique bone structure has sparked new questions for paleontologists regarding how ankylosaurs evolved. The creature had a tiny brain, but it was still able to survive for over 100 million years.

This particular specimen is missing its tail. However, paleontologists believe the vertebrae that are present suggest that a club or spikes were attached to the end for use as a weapon.

Matthew Dempsey/ Maidment et al.After discovering additional Spicomellus fossils, paleontologists were able to reconstruct what the dinosaur looked like.

Researchers also theorize that the unique spikes on Spicomellus were used both as defense against predators and to attract potential mates.

“When you see the neck collar of this thing, it seems like total overkill,” Butler told The Guardian. “It does seem like the kind of thing that would’ve complicated its life.”

Unanswered questions remain as to how and why the armored collar simplified in ankylosaurs over time. For now, scientists are looking to Morocco and other North African countries to expand their research and find additional evidence to support their theories.

“To find such elaborate armor in an early ankylosaur changes our understanding of how these dinosaurs evolved,” Maidment explained. “It shows just how significant Africa’s dinosaurs are, and how important it is to improve our understanding of them.”

After reading about the strange ankylosaur fossil found in Morocco, discover these 31 dinosaur facts you probably didn’t know. Then, learn about the prehistoric armadillo known as the glyptodon.