Triceratops fossil origin and body characteristics

Triceratops is a very numerous and famous herbivorous dinosaur in the late Cretaceous. It and Tyrannosaurus lived at the same time in what is now North America. When encountering Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops used its strong and sturdy body to duel with its sharp triangle. Let's take a look at some of the salient features of Triceratops and the latest research results.

Triceratops proudly possesses three horns, two of which grow on the top of its head. The third horn grows on its nose. It is a sharp spear used to protect itself. If there is a spear, there must be a shield. Triceratops actually perfectly combines spear and shield. , the back of Triceratops' skull extended into a huge neck shield, acting as a body shield. It is worth mentioning that the neck shield of Triceratops is solid, which is different from some other ceratopsians, such as Chasmosaurus, whose neck shield is hollow, which is obviously not strong enough. The neck shield of Triceratops also has another feature. It may be gorgeous and colorful, which can serve as a protective color in a natural environment that is close to modern times. It can also be used as a peacock tail-like courtship tool. The combination of spear and shield made Triceratops a complete offensive and defensive machine, but it also made its head very huge, estimated to weigh nearly 315 kilograms.

Another important feature of Triceratops is its specialized chewing structure. If we look closely at the mouth of Triceratops, we will find that the snout of Triceratops has evolved into a side-tight mouth, with the lower jaw hanging below the upper jaw. The mouthparts thus constructed can cut tough plant stems efficiently.

The relationship between Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus is somewhat similar to the lions and buffalo groups in Africa today. This is inferred based on the biological population pyramid and the proportion of extant herbivorous carnivores. When a herd of bison is attacked by a lion, they will circle the old, weak, sick and disabled in the middle, and then form a circle with their heads facing outward to form a copper wall. We can extend this to the encounter between the Triceratops group and the Tyrannosaurus. Of course, this is just speculation. In fact, even a Tyrannosaurus rex attacking a stray Triceratops is not a piece of cake. After a Triceratops is attacked, it will be forced to fight back, lowering its head to reveal its spear-like horns. It weighs 6 to 12 tons and travels at a speed of 35 kilometers per hour. The high-speed assault was definitely something the Tyrannosaurus couldn't afford.

Chinese name: Triceratops 

Latin name: Triceratops

Age of survival: Late Cretaceous 

Fossil origin: America

Physical characteristics: 9 meters long 

Diet: Plants 

Species: Ceratopsian 

Definition: face with three corners

animal tags： Triceratops