Question

Thyreophorans are?

Answer 1

Thyreophora, meaning "shield bearer", is a group of armored ornithischian dinosaurs from the Early Jurassic Period until the end of the Cretaceous period. They are characterized by the presence of a body armor along the body ( usually lined up in longitudinal rows).

Thyreophora are a group of small to quite large armored plant-eating dinosaurs.

Early thyreophorans were small bipedal forms. Best known of these is Scutellosaurus.

The armor was useful against small predators however, not so useful against bigger predators.

The next known Thyreophoran is Scelidosaurus. This dinosaur grew to about four meters long and a little over a meter tall, walking on all four legs. It had spikes along its back, and hoof-like claws.

The remaining Thyreophorans consist of two major groups: the Stegosauria and the Ankylosauria.

The stegosaurids had two rows of spikes or plates runnning along their backs and tails. Stegosaurids are known from most of the globe.. These were the most diverse in the late Jurassic, though the genus Dravidosaurus lived in southern India in the Late Cretaceous when the group went extinct.