Brachyceratops
Brachyceratops montanensis
Pronounced:
Bra - key - Sair - uh - tops
Diet:
Herbivore (Plant-Eater)
Name Means:
"Short Horned Face"
Length:
5 feet (1.8 m)
Height:
2 feet (.7 m)
Weight:
150 pounds (68 kilos)
Time:
Late Cretaceous - 75 million
years ago
Fossil remains for this Dinosaur have been found in Western
United States
Brachyceratops' classification is tenuous at best, as
scientists think that the type specimen may in fact be a
juvenile animal of another genus, possibly
Centrosaurus
Whatever the case may be, the
fact remains that this specimen
was a small, plant-eating horned
dinosaur that may have been
separated from its herd and
killed by a predator, such as an
Albertosaurus Like
others in its family, it had a
long frill of bone at the back
of its skull that was probably
used to protect its neck from
predators and to help attract
the opposite sex.
The genus Brachyceratops has
no other species and, since it
is a juvenile, there is much
speculation as to whether it
should be regarded as a genus.
In the past, this specimen has
been variously assigned to
Monoclonius and
Centrosaurus More
recent study of the specimen
seems to show differences
between this specimen and
Monoclonius so the
debate goes on. |
