Edmontosaurus
Edmontosaurus was a huge, plant-eating dinosaur with a duck-like beak. It lived in herds and was one of the biggest herbivores in North America, even bigger than T. rex!1
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Fun facts
Edmontosaurus had a fleshy 'mitten' on its hands, formed by two long fingers wrapped together, which helped support its weight when walking on all fours.1
It could rear up on its hind legs to reach high branches, thanks to powerful hindlimbs and a long tail for balance.1
Edmontosaurus lived in huge herds of tens to hundreds of individuals, and many bonebeds with thousands of bones have been found.1
The first Edmontosaurus skeleton was put on display in Canada in 1913, making it the first mounted dinosaur skeleton in the country.1
Two species are known: E. regalis lived about 73 to 70 million years ago, and E. annectens lived about 68 to 66 million years ago.1
Edmontosaurus had a duck-like beak and hundreds of teeth that formed a grinding 'pavement' to chew tough plants.1
Most asked questions about Edmontosaurus
?How big was Edmontosaurus?
About 12 to 15 metres (39 to 49 feet) long and weighed around 5.6 to 15.9 metric tons (6.2 to 17.5 short tons).3
?What did Edmontosaurus eat?
It ate tough plants like pine needles, cones, twigs, and evergreen trees. It used its duck-like beak to crop food and hundreds of teeth to grind it up.41
?When did Edmontosaurus live?
It lived during the Late Cretaceous period, from about 76 to 66 million years ago.4
?Did Edmontosaurus have feathers?
No, mummified specimens show preserved skin with a bumpy texture, but no feathers have been found.4
?How fast could Edmontosaurus run?
Computer models suggest it could reach speeds up to 57 km/h (35 mph) as a subadult.1
?Could Edmontosaurus swim?
It lived in wetlands and coastal plains, so it likely could swim, but no source gives a clear answer.1
?Why did Edmontosaurus have a duck beak?
Its broad, duck-like beak helped it cut loose food like twigs and leaves. It was a herbivore.34
?Where was Edmontosaurus found?
Fossils have been found across western North America, from Colorado to Alaska, especially in Canada and the United States.31
?Did Edmontosaurus live in herds?
Yes, it lived in herds of tens to hundreds of individuals, as shown by many bonebeds with thousands of bones.1
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Myth buster
Myth: Some people think Edmontosaurus had a hollow crest on its head like some other duck-billed dinosaurs.
Truth: Edmontosaurus was a 'crestless' hadrosaur, meaning it did not have a large hollow crest. Its head was flat on top.1
For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Edmontosaurus
- Named by
- Lambe 19175
- Group
- Duck-bills
- Family / clade
- Hadrosauridae5
- Classification
- Ornithischia > Ornithopoda > Iguanodontia > Hadrosauridae5
- Age of the rocks
- 90 to 66 million years (Coniacian / Maastrichtian)5
- Rock formations
- Hell Creek, Lance, Horseshoe Canyon5
- Countries
- USA, Canada5
- Fossil records
- 85 in the Paleobiology Database5
- Also known as
- Anatosaurus, Anatotitan (older names now counted as the same animal)5
- Discovery
- The first Edmontosaurus fossil was found in 1912 near Drumheller, Alberta, Canada. It was named Edmontosaurus regalis in 1917 by Lawrence Lambe, after the Edmonton Formation where it was found.1
- Still debated
- Scientists are still debating whether some hadrosaur fossils from Alberta belong to E. annectens or are too incomplete to be sure.1
Where the facts come from
- Edmontosaurus | The Canadian Encyclopedia (thecanadianencyclopedia.ca)
- Edmontosaurus annectens (en.wikipedia.org)
- Edmontosaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
- Edmontosaurus | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
- Edmontosaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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