Dino card No. 1710 of 2,027

Stellasaurus

Say it: stel-uh-SORE-us

Name means: “star lizard”1

Ate: PlantsHorned dinosLate Cretaceous

Stellasaurus was a horned dinosaur that lived about 75 million years ago. It had a long nose horn and a fancy frill on its head. It walked on four legs and ate plants.2 1

Lived

84 to 72 million years ago5

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Montana, USA, in the Two Medicine Formation2 1

Food

Plants1

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

cool stuff

Fun facts

Stellasaurus had a long, straight nose horn and small bumps above its eyes, similar to its relative Styracosaurus.2 3

Its skull frill had long spikes called P3 processes, but the other spikes were shorter, giving it a unique look.2 3

Stellasaurus lived about 75.2 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period.3

Scientists think Stellasaurus might be a transitional form, meaning it shows features between older and younger horned dinosaurs.2 3

The only known fossil is a partial skull, found in the Landslide Butte area near the US-Canada border.2

Stellasaurus is part of a group called centrosaurines, which are horned dinosaurs with big nose horns and fancy frills.2

AI-made picture of Stellasaurus — An AI-made picture of how Stellasaurus might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Stellasaurus

?What does the name Stellasaurus mean?

Stellasaurus means 'star lizard', named for the shape of its head ornamentation and as a tribute to David Bowie's song 'Starman'.4

?When did Stellasaurus live?

Stellasaurus lived about 75.2 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period.3 2

?What did Stellasaurus eat?

Stellasaurus ate plants, like other horned dinosaurs.4

?Was Stellasaurus related to Styracosaurus?

Yes, Stellasaurus was closely related to Styracosaurus and had a similar long nose horn and small bumps above its eyes.4 2

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Stellasaurus
Named by: Wilson et al. 20205
Group: Horned dinos
Family / clade: Ceratopsidae5
Classification: Ornithischia > Ceratopsia > Ceratopsidae5
Age of the rocks: 84 to 72 million years (Campanian)5
Rock formations: Two Medicine5
Countries: USA5
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database5
Discovery: Stellasaurus was named by Wilson and colleagues in 2020. The fossil, a partial skull, was found in Montana and is stored at the Museum of the Rockies.1 2
Still debated: Scientists debate whether Stellasaurus is a separate species or just a stage in the growth of another horned dinosaur like Einiosaurus.2 3

Where the facts come from

PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
A new, transitional centrosaurine ceratopsid from the Upper Cretaceous Two Medicine Formation of Montana and the evolution of the ‘ Styracosaurus -line' dinosaurs (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
royalsocietypublishing.org (royalsocietypublishing.org)
Stellasaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
Stellasaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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