Facts About Triceratops
| The triceratops was an unusual looking animal that resembled the rhinoceros, the closest comparison with any living animal today. The huge head of the triceratops was a third the size of the body at a length of up to 10 feet.More... |
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How Tall Was Triceratops ? ?
The triceratops was a bizarre looking animal, the nearest comparison being with today’s rhinoceros. It had a bulky body and a relatively short tail. The body was supported by four sturdy legs. The animal stood about 10 feet tall and was 30 feet in length of which the head alone was 10 feet, the largest of any dinosaur. It weighed between 6 and 12 tons.
The distinctive and unusual feature of the triceratops was its battle armor. This comprised of a bony ruff that grew from the back of the skull and three horns. One short horn was located above its parrot like beak while the other two, much longer, grew from behind the eyes. More...
What Did Triceratops Eat ? ?
The triceratops had a turtle-like beak with powerful jaws and cheek teeth. It was herbivorous and lived near lakes and ponds preferring a humid environment. The triceratops chewed its food because of its teeth and strong jaws. In this it differed from other plant-eating dinosaurs which invariably tugged on their food and swallowed it. This gave the triceratops a distinct advantage in foraging as it could handle the tougher plant food that other animals, because of their lack of chewing ability, would avoid.
The triceratops was a strange looking animal that could best be compared with the rhinoceros of today. It had a bulky body with a short tail which hung low or dragged behind. Its total body length was about 30 feet and weight between 6 and 12 tons. The triceratops’ head was one of the largest in the dinosaur kingdom being about a third of the body length.More...
Where Did The Triceratops Live ? ?
The triceratops is believed to have lived in western Canada and the western part of the United States. The first fossil was a skull found by John Bell Hatcher in 1888. But the triceratops was so named the following year by the paleontologist Othoniel Marsh from a fossil found near Denver, Colorado which he mistakenly took to be that of an extinct species of buffalo.
The triceratops lived at the fag end of the age of reptiles from 72 to 65 million years ago. It was one of the last of the dinosaur species to have evolved just prior to extinction. Judging by fossil finds of a large collection of bones from several animals in the same pit, it is presumed that the triceratops was a herding animal. More...
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