Kentrosaurus (Kentrosaurus) the younger, “prickly” fellow of the famous stegosaurus. These relatives lived in the late Jurassic period. But stegosaurs were found in North America, and kentrosaurs inhabited the territory of East Africa, where Tanzia is now located.
They were four-legged herbivores. Kentrosaurs defended themselves from predators with long bone spikes. For greater security, several spikes were located in the shoulder girdle area. The Kentrosaurus also had spikes on its tail to repel attacking predators.
Bone plates, starting from the base of the neck and covering the entire back, apparently helped the Kentrosaurus to regulate body temperature in the same way as the Stegosaurus did. Shoulder spikes protruding to the sides reduced the danger of an enemy attack from the side. Most stegosaurus had the same spikes.
Spikes in the Kentrosaurus were in the back of the back and at the base of the tail, which moved from side to side and ended with a forked spike. Since there were a number of sharp spikes along the entire length of the tail, it was not at all easy for predators to approach Kentrosaurus. Only the neck, belly and paws of the Kentrosaurus were unprotected.
Large paired bone plates and spikes are a distinctive feature of the appearance of stegosaurus. They were located along the entire length of the animal’s body from the neck, through the back and to the tip of the tail. The plates were not attached to the bone skeleton of the animal, but were located in the thickness of the hard skin.
In Kentrosaurus, such protection began directly behind the head with a row of even triangular plates. On the back of the animal, the plates were of the same shape, but were larger. In the pelvic region of the Kentrosaurus, the plates elongated, became thinner and turned into long, sharp spikes that ran along the entire length of the tail.
The body of the Kentrosaurus was barrel-shaped, and the stomach was huge to digest large volumes of coarse plant food. The forelimbs were much shorter than the hind limbs, but the large size of the foot indicates that Kentrosaurs moved on four legs.
Even if they tried to move only on their hind legs, the weight of the body would immediately return them to their original position. Probably, Kentrosaurs could sometimes rest their forelimbs against trees in order to get young shoots, but they could not stay in this position for a long time.
