Lesothosaurus

Lesotho lizard

• Lesotho · Sesotho (place name) · Lesotho, the country in southern Africa
• sauros · Greek · lizard

The name means "lizard from Lesotho", after the southern African country where the fossils were found. Galton chose it because the original specimens came from the Upper Elliot Formation of Lesotho. The "-saurus" ending is the standard Greek word for lizard used in many dinosaur names.

Named by

Galton

Year named

1978

Period

Early Jurassic

Stages

Hettangian – Sinemurian

Found in

Upper Elliot Formation, Lesotho (also reported from South Africa)

A small, early bipedal ornithischian dinosaur. The type species is Lesothosaurus diagnosticus. Its exact position within Ornithischia is debated. Fabrosaurus australis is sometimes treated as a possible senior synonym, but that name is generally regarded as a nomen dubium.