Eotriceratops
Eotriceratops was a huge plant-eating dinosaur with a big frill and three horns on its face. It lived in what is now Canada, and it was one of the earliest relatives of the famous Triceratops. This dinosaur was as heavy as two elephants!1
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Fun facts
Eotriceratops lived about 68.8 million years ago, which is older than Triceratops.1
Its skull was huge, about 3 metres (9.8 feet) long, almost as long as a small car.1
The horns above its eyes were about 80 centimetres (2.6 feet) long and curved forward.1
Its frill had long, spindle-shaped bony bumps along the edge, which were different from those of Triceratops.1
Three bite marks on its skull show that scavengers may have nibbled on it after it died.1
The first fossil of Eotriceratops was discovered in 1910 by Barnum Brown, but he ignored it. It was rediscovered in 2001 by a cook named Glen Guthrie.1
Eotriceratops had at least 35 teeth in its upper jaw to grind tough plants.1
Most asked questions about Eotriceratops
?How big was Eotriceratops?
It was about 8.5 to 9 metres (28 to 30 feet) long and weighed around 11 metric tons (12 short tons), as heavy as two African elephants.1
?What did Eotriceratops eat?
It was a plant-eater (herbivore). It had at least 35 teeth in its upper jaw to grind tough plants.1
?When did Eotriceratops live?
It lived about 68.8 million years ago, during the late Cretaceous period, which is older than Triceratops.1
?Where was Eotriceratops found?
Its fossils were found in the Horseshoe Canyon Formation in Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada.1
?Is Eotriceratops a dinosaur?
Yes, it is a dinosaur. It is a type of herbivorous ceratopsian dinosaur, closely related to Triceratops.1
?How many horns did Eotriceratops have?
It had three horns: two large ones above its eyes (about 80 cm or 31.5 inches long) and a smaller one on its nose.1
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Myth buster
Myth: Some people think Eotriceratops is just a young Triceratops.
Truth: Scientists believe Eotriceratops is a different, older relative of Triceratops, not a juvenile.1
For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Eotriceratops
- Named by
- Wu et al. 20072
- Group
- Horned dinos
- Family / clade
- Ceratopsidae2
- Classification
- Ornithischia > Ceratopsia > Ceratopsidae2
- Age of the rocks
- 72 to 66 million years (Maastrichtian)2
- Rock formations
- Horseshoe Canyon2
- Countries
- Canada2
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database2
- Discovery
- The first skeleton was found in 1910 by Barnum Brown in Alberta, Canada, but he left it. In 2001, a team rediscovered it, and in 2007 scientists named it Eotriceratops xerinsularis.1
- Still debated
- Scientists are not sure if some fossils from New Mexico belong to Eotriceratops or to other horned dinosaurs like Ojoceratops.1
Where the facts come from
- Eotriceratops (en.wikipedia.org)
- Eotriceratops in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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