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Centrosaurus apertus (Lambe, 1904)

Centrosaurus apertus dinosaur
Name Means: "Pointed Lizard" Length: 20 feet (6 m)
Pronounced: Sen-tro-Sore-us Weight: 15 tons (13,600 kilos)
When it lived: Late Cretaceous - 75 MYA    
Where found: Alberta, Canada    
Another ferocious looking horned dinosaur; Centrosaurus was large and heavily built. With a big curved nasal horn and sharply hooked spikes on its neck frill, an assault by Centrosaurus would likely have resulted in giant stabbing and tearing wounds that could be deadly to any opponent. It appears that Centrosaurus traveled in large herds, both an invitation and a daunting sight to the Cretaceous predators.
    Centrosaurus was a fairly typical Ceratopsian family member, with a heavy, stocky body, facial horns, and a neck frill with spikes. The neck frill on Centrosaurus was rather small, but it had two wickedly hooked spikes that curved sharply downward to hold and tear the flesh of taller opponents. The brow horns were mere lumps, and the nasal horn was long and slightly curved like a modern Rhinoceros.
    Centrosaurus remains are part of one of the largest bone beds ever located, in western Canada. Over 200 Centrosaurus individuals have been identified, and most of the bone bed has yet to be uncovered. Only a few juveniles have been located. This may mean that predators followed the herds, waiting to attack the young and weak.
  The remains of Centrosaurus were first noted in Alberta by palaeontologist Lawrence Lambe in 1904. Even today, most of the known remains come from the badlands of the Red Deer River.  The skull alone was more than one meter (three ft) long, with a single forward thrust nasal horn and small growths over each eye. Bony growths decorated the edge of its frill, and protective tongues of bone drooped over the two large frill openings. Some specimens have been discovered with skin impressions.  Like Chasmosaurus, the frill was not solid bone; two large openings on either side reduced the weight considerably, and provided edges for powerful jaw muscles to be attached.  Centrosaurus may have lived in herds for protection from predators such as Albertosaurus.

 

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