Cretaceous
Polacanthus
Polacanthus foxii
The catalogue presents Polacanthus as a herbivore member of Polacanthidae that lived during the Cretaceous, between 130 Ma. Its estimated range is 5.0 m in length and 1 t in mass, giving a practical sense of scale. Reference material comes from Isle of Wight, England. Size and mass are approximations and may change with new fossils or methods.
Evidence-backed summary
For Polacanthus, the PBDB records the taxonomic attribution as Fox (1866).
The PBDB places it in Nodosauridae, and the catalogue record assigns it to the family Polacanthidae.
- PBDB · taxon.parent
- Polacanthidae
In the PBDB record, the reported stratigraphic range runs from the Berriasian to the Albian.
The PBDB catalogues 5 occurrences, with material from the Wessex Formation (2), from the Vectis Formation (1) and from the Ferruginous Sands Formation (1). Provenance: United Kingdom.
The catalogue records the holotype as NHMUK PV R 175 and the type locality as “Isle of Wight, England”.
- NHMUK PV R 175
- Isle of Wight, England
The catalogue's reference measurements are 5.0 m in length and 1 t in mass — estimates, which vary with specimen and method.
- 5.0 m
- 1 ton
The record gathers 86 bibliographic references registered in the PBDB, listed below.
Where it lived
Fossil occurrences on today’s map and in the tectonic reconstruction.
Positions reconstructed by PBDB/GPlates, not observed; this is not an exact habitat map.
Artistic 3D reconstruction
There is no approved species-specific 3D model yet. Generic anatomy will not be presented as if it were evidence.
Physical Specifications
- Length
- 5.0 m
- Weight
- 1 t
- Period
- Cretaceous
- Time range
- 130 Ma
Discovery Information
- First Discovery
- 1866
- Described by
- John Hulke
Taxonomic Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Ornithischia
- Family
- Polacanthidae
- Genus
- Polacanthus
- Species
- P. foxii
Data status
Taxonomic name matched to PBDB and checked on 2026-08-08.
Taxonomic linkage does not automatically validate size, mass, behaviour or appearance.
- Type specimen
- NHMUK PV R 175
- Type locality
- Isle of Wight, England