A New Nodosaurid Ankylosaur from the Chaochuan Formation of Dongyang, Zhejiang Province, China

Dongyangopelta yangyanensis gen. et sp. nov. from the Chaochuan Formation (Albian - Cenomanian) of Dongyang, Zhejiang Province, China is characterized: the convex anterior surface of the first presacral rod centrum strongly inflates laterally and slightly curves posteriorly; the fused pelvic shield composes of larger pebble-shaped bosses, defined by smaller tubercles or flat stretches of bone; most osteoderms are heavily roughened with notches and grooves for dermal attachment along the edge; domed triradiate osteoderm is present; sigmoid curvature of the dorsal surface of the ilium is present; the preacetabular process curves lateroventrally at the anterior end and has a shallow groove in the edge of the lateral and anterior ends and strong lateromedial expansion of the distal femur. The femoral head is well separated from the greater trochanter, indicating that Dongyangopelta is a nodosaurid ankylosaur, the second from southeast China. Phylogenetic analysis also positions this taxon in the Nodosauridae clade. Dongyangopelta differs from Zhejiangosaurus in the characters of presacral rod, ilium, and femur. Dongyangopelta represents the first ankylosaur outside North America and Europe that definitively possesses a pelvic shield with fused armor.