Ziapelta is a genus of dinosaur belonging to the family Ankylosauridae. It lived approximately 75 to 72 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous, in what is now New Mexico, USA. The first fossils of Ziapelta were discovered in the early 2000s, providing paleontologists with valuable insights into this lesser-known armored dinosaur.

Ziapelta was a medium-sized ankylosaurid dinosaur, estimated to have reached lengths of around 4 to 6 meters. Ziapelta was distinguished by its heavily armored body, decorated with bony plates known as osteoderms, embedded in its skin. These osteoderms acted as a protective shield, ensuring Ziapelta's safety from potential predators. The keeled osteoderms featured a high cutting edge and measured between 146 and 169 millimeters in length, 58 and 104 millimeters in width, with keels varying between 2.4 centimeters (0.94 in) and 10.9 centimeters (4.3 in) in height.

At the midline where the middle segments met, an irregular row of small trapezium-shaped "interstitial" osteoderms was present within the suture. Furthermore, Ziapelta possessed a clubbed tail, a characteristic trait of ankylosaurids, which it likely utilized for defensive purposes.