Pachyrhinosaurus
A huge bony boss instead of a horn: the Cretaceous's unusual ceratopsian
Summary
Pachyrhinosaurus ("thick-nosed lizard") was an unusual ceratopsian that lived in North America in the Late Cretaceous. Unlike its relatives Triceratops and Styracosaurus, it had no nose horn; instead it carried a huge, flattened bony boss on top of its snout.
In depth
Pachyrhinosaurus lived 73–71 million years ago in what are now Alberta (Canada) and Alaska. It was 6–8 metres long and weighed about 4 tonnes: bigger than Styracosaurus and close to Triceratops. Unlike the pointed nose horns of other members of its family, Pachyrhinosaurus had thick, rough bony bosses over its nose and eyes. What these bosses were for is debated: whether they were the base of a horn worn down over its lifetime or a special shield for head-butting contests between males is still being studied. It lived in herds and may have been one of the first known dinosaurs to migrate.
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