Yinlong – Styracosaurus Product Features: 2 Toys in One Unzip and Flip Action Real Animals and Real Science Cute, Fun and Educational Ages 5+ Item is available now: USD $20.00

Everyone loves Triceratops! Well Triceratops has many cool cousins who also lived during the Cretaceous period. One of those is Styracosaurus who is also a rhinoceros-like, plant eating dinosaur with a huge horn at the end of its nose. Most of these animals lived in what is now North America. But where did this family of dino favorites come from? Well it seems they may have had their origin in China with a small dinosaur called Yinlong 85 million years earlier.

Yinlong

Year : 160 million years ago
Era : Late Jurassic
Classification : Ceratopsia
Habitat : Fossils found in western China
Size : 5ft/1.5m
Diet : Herbivore

Yinlong, which means “Hidden Dragon”, is the oldest and most primitive ceratopsian known to science. A single complete skeleton was discovered in 2004. Based on the rock layer, it lived in the Late Jurassic making it the only ceratopsian known to have lived during that period. All other ceratopsian discoveries have dated to the later Cretaceous period. Yinlong’s beak and skull ornamentation identify it as a small early ancestor of the more well known large ceratopsians such as triceratops.

Styracosaurus

Year : 75 million years ago
Era : Late Cretaceous
Classification : Ceratopsia
Habitat : Fossils found in North America
Weight : 6000lbs / 2700kg
Size : 18ft / 5.5m
Diet : Herbivore

Styracosaurus, which means “Spiked Lizard” was a rhinoceros-like ceratopsian dinosaur. It is recognizable by the large neck frill, decorated by an array of large crown horns and the large horn protruding from the nose. This horn may have reached lengths of up to 2ft / 60cm. There is debate among scientists about the function of the horns and frills. Some suggest that the horns were for combat with predators, while others think that it was for display to attract a mate. The large frill may also have been used for regulating body temperature.