Ischyrosaurus

strong lizard

• ischyros · Greek · strong, powerful
• sauros · Greek · lizard

The name Ischyrosaurus combines the Greek word 'ischyros' (ἰσχυρός), meaning 'strong' or 'powerful', with the Greek 'sauros', meaning 'lizard'. It was named in reference to the robust, massive nature of the fossil material — in particular a very large limb bone — that was assigned to it. The name therefore translates roughly as 'strong lizard' or 'powerful lizard'.

Named by

Hulke

Year named

1874

Period

Late Jurassic

Stage

Tithonian

Found in

England, UK

Ischyrosaurus is generally considered a nomen dubium. It was based on a large but fragmentary humerus from the Kimmeridge Clay of England. Some researchers have suggested it may belong to a sauropod dinosaur (possibly a brachiosaur-grade animal), but the material is too incomplete to confidently assign to any known genus. It should not be confused with the plesiosaur genus Ischyrosaurus — the name has a complicated nomenclatural history with potential overlap in usage.