Borealopelta markmitchelli
Pronunciación: bor-ee-AL-oh-PEL-tah mark-MICH-el-eye
Ankylosauria · Nodosauridae
A nodosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Alberta preserved in 3D with its skin, horn-covered armor, pigment and last meal. Found in an oil-sands mine in 2011, it had washed out to sea and was buried on the sea floor.
- Armored
- Quadrupedal
- Exceptional preservation
- Skin impressions known
- Famous specimen
- Período
- Cretácico· Albiense
- Dieta
- Herbívoro
- Longitud
- 5,5 m
- Masa
- 1300 kg
- Ubicación
- Alberta, Canada
Respuestas rápidas
- ¿Qué tamaño tenía Borealopelta markmitchelli?
- Borealopelta markmitchelli medía unos 5,5 m de largo. Alcanzaba unos 1,2–1,6 m de altura a la cadera. Pesaba alrededor de 1,3 t. (Wikipedia: Borealopelta 2026; Paul 2016)
- ¿Cuándo vivió Borealopelta markmitchelli?
- Borealopelta markmitchelli vivió durante el Cretácico Inferior, hace unos 113–100,5 millones de años. (Brown et al. 2020; Cohen et al. 2023)
- ¿Dónde se han encontrado fósiles de Borealopelta markmitchelli?
- Se han encontrado fósiles de Borealopelta markmitchelli en Clearwater Formation (Alberta) y Canada. (Brown et al. 2017; Brown 2017)
- ¿Qué comía Borealopelta markmitchelli?
- Borealopelta markmitchelli era herbívoro. (Brown et al. 2017; Brown 2017)
- ¿Quién nombró a Borealopelta markmitchelli y cuándo?
- Borealopelta markmitchelli fue descrito por Caleb M. Brown et al. en 2017. (Brown et al. 2017; Brown 2017)
En esta página
- Período
- Cretácico113–100,5 Ma
- Dieta
- Herbívoro
- Longitud
- 5,5 m
- Masa
- 1,3 t
- Ubicación
- Canada
- Clasificación
- Ankylosauria · Nodosauridae
- Descrito
- 2017, Caleb M. Brown et al.
Resumen
Este contenido está disponible en inglés.
Borealopelta markmitchelli lived in what is now northern Alberta in the Early Cretaceous (early Albian). Its body floated out to sea and sank, and was buried in marine sediments of the Clearwater Formation. Shawn Funk found it in 2011 while digging at the Suncor Millennium Mine near Fort McMurray; technician Mark Mitchell spent nearly six years preparing it.
It is one of the best-preserved dinosaurs ever found: the front half of the body is in three dimensions, with the bony armor still capped by horn (keratin) sheaths and covered by scales. Melanin traces show it was darker on the back than on the belly, a camouflage pattern called countershading, which suggests that even a 1.3-tonne armored animal was hunted by large predators.
A mass in its belly holds its last meal: mostly fern leaves, with some twigs and about 6% charcoal. The plants point to feeding in late spring or summer, perhaps on regrowth after a wildfire (Brown et al. 2020).
Significado del nombre
"Northern shield", from Latin borealis ("northern") and Greek peltē ("shield"); markmitchelli honours Mark Mitchell, who prepared the specimen (Brown et al. 2017).
Biología y evidencia
Lo que piensan los científicos sobre cómo vivía este animal y qué tan sólida es la evidencia de cada idea.
Alimentación
Borealopelta fed on plants regrowing after a wildfire.
Nivel de evidencia: HipótesisAbout 6% of the meal is charcoal, which may mean it browsed ferns in a recently burned forest.
Evidencia a favor / en contra · 1
Evidencia a favor
Espécimen · Borealopelta stomach contents
A mass in the abdomen made of 88% leaf tissue, 85% of it leptosporangiate ferns, with stems, wood and about 6% charcoal.
Espécimen: TMP 2011.033.0001
The last meal of Borealopelta was mostly ferns.
Nivel de evidencia: Evidencia directaPlant remains preserved in its stomach are dominated by fern leaves, with few cycads or conifers. It is one meal, not a full diet.
Evidencia a favor / en contra · 1
Evidencia a favor
Espécimen · Borealopelta stomach contents
A mass in the abdomen made of 88% leaf tissue, 85% of it leptosporangiate ferns, with stems, wood and about 6% charcoal.
Espécimen: TMP 2011.033.0001
Piel y cobertura
Borealopelta was countershaded, darker above and lighter below.
Nivel de evidencia: Evidencia moderadaChemical traces of melanin show the pattern. Countershading is camouflage, which implies that large predators hunted even this armored animal.
Evidencia a favor / en contra · 1
Evidencia a favor
Otro · Borealopelta melanin pattern
Melanin identified by mass spectrometry in the organic residues, with a darker back and lighter underside, and paler parascapular spines.
Espécimen: TMP 2011.033.0001
The armor of Borealopelta was covered by horn sheaths and scales.
Nivel de evidencia: Evidencia directaThe sheaths are preserved in place over the bony plates, which shows spines were longer in life than the bone alone suggests.
Evidencia a favor / en contra · 1
Evidencia a favor
Impresión de piel · Borealopelta keratin sheaths and scales
Organic scales and horn-like keratin sheaths cap and exaggerate nearly all osteoderms along the body.
Espécimen: TMP 2011.033.0001
Tamaño
- Longitud
- 5,5 m
- Altura
- 1,4 mrango publicado 1,2–1,6 m
- Masa
- 1300 kg
(18 pies)
Basado en TMP 2011.033.0001
(4,6 pies)
Basado en TMP 2011.033.0001
Basado en TMP 2011.033.0001
Línea de tiempo
Períodos: Albiense (113–100,5 Ma), Cretácico Inferior (145–100,5 Ma)
Albian stage bounds; ammonite, pollen and foraminifera date the Wabiskaw Member to the Early Albian (Brown et al. 2020). PBDB still lists the occurrence as Aptian.
Ubicación
Formaciones
- Clearwater Formation · Alberta
- Suncor Millennium Mine, near Fort McMurray, Alberta · Clearwater Formation · Alberta
Estos son los lugares donde se han encontrado fósiles, no toda el área donde vivía el animal.
Ecosistema
Vivió en: Clearwater Sea
margen marino
An Early Cretaceous shallow sea (between fair- and storm-weather wave base) 200-400 km off the coast; Borealopelta is a land animal carried out to sea.
Clasificación
- cladoDinosauria
- cladoOrnithischia
- cladoThyreophora
- cladoAnkylosauria
- familiaNodosauridae
- géneroBorealopelta
- especieBorealopelta markmitchelli
Estado taxonómico: Válido
Registro fósil
| Número de catálogo | Estado | Institución | Hallado |
|---|---|---|---|
| TMP 2011.033.0001 | Holotipo | Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology (TMP) | 2011 |
Lo que se ha encontrado
Holotipo: TMP 2011.033.0001
- Conservado
- Parcial
- Reconstruido
- Desconocido / no registrado
Región por región (tabla)
| Región | Estado |
|---|---|
| Skull | Conservado |
| Mandible | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Teeth | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Cervical vertebrae | Conservado |
| Dorsal vertebrae | Conservado |
| Sacrum | Parcial |
| Caudal vertebrae | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Ribs | Conservado |
| Gastralia | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Scapula / shoulder girdle | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Humerus | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Forearm (radius / ulna) | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Hand (manus) | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Pelvis | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Femur | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Tibia / fibula | Desconocido / no registrado |
| Foot (pes) | Desconocido / no registrado |
Descubrimiento
- Año de descripción
- 2017
- Descrito por
- Caleb M. Brown et al.
- Espécimen tipo
- TMP 2011.033.0001
Cronología del descubrimiento
2011 · Primer material hallado
Shawn Funk finds a nodosaur in an oil-sands mine
A heavy-equipment operator hits the fossil at the Suncor Millennium Mine; the Royal Tyrrell Museum excavates it.
Personas: Shawn Funk, Donald M. Henderson
2017 · Descrito formalmente
Brown et al. name Borealopelta markmitchelli
The new nodosaur is described with evidence of countershading.
Personas: Caleb M. Brown, Donald M. Henderson
2020 · Estudio importante
The last meal of Borealopelta is described
The stomach contents are analysed plant by plant.
Personas: Caleb M. Brown
Fuentes
- (2026). Paleobiology Database: Borealopelta occurrences. The Paleobiology Database (paleobiodb.org), data service 1.2, accessed 2026-09-23. https://paleobiodb.org/data1.2/occs/list.txt?base_name=Borealopelta&show=coords,paleoloc,strat,loc,ref&pgm=gplates (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- (2026). Wikipedia: Borealopelta. Wikipedia (English), accessed 2026-09-23. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borealopelta (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- Brown, C. M. (2017). An exceptionally preserved armored dinosaur reveals the morphology and allometry of osteoderms and their horny epidermal coverings. PeerJ 5: e4066. doi:10.7717/peerj.4066 (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- Brown, C. M., Greenwood, D. R., Kalyniuk, J. E., Braman, D. R., Henderson, D. M., Greenwood, C. L. & Basinger, J. F. (2020). Dietary palaeoecology of an Early Cretaceous armoured dinosaur (Ornithischia; Nodosauridae) based on floral analysis of stomach contents. Royal Society Open Science 7: 200305. doi:10.1098/rsos.200305 (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- Brown, C. M., Henderson, D. M., Vinther, J., Fletcher, I., Sistiaga, A., Herrera, J. & Summons, R. E. (2017). An exceptionally preserved three-dimensional armored dinosaur reveals insights into coloration and Cretaceous predator-prey dynamics. Current Biology 27: 2514-2521. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2017.06.071 (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- Cohen, K. M., Harper, D. A. T., Gibbard, P. L. & Car, N. (2023). International Chronostratigraphic Chart (v2023/09). International Commission on Stratigraphy. https://stratigraphy.org/ICSchart/ChronostratChart2023-09.pdf (se abre en una pestaña nueva)
- Paul, G. S. (2016). The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs (2nd edition). Princeton University Press.