| Coahuilaceratops | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Name | Coahuilaceratops | |||
| Order | Ornithischia | |||
| Suborder | Ceratopsia | |||
| Class | Reptilia | |||
| Name Translation | Coahuila Horn Face | |||
| Period | Late Cretaceous | |||
| Location | Coahuila, Mexico (North America) | |||
| Diet | Plants | |||
| Size | 7 metres (21 feet) long and 2 metres (6 feet) tall | |||
Coahuilaceratops (meaning "Coahuila horn face") is a genus of ceratopsian dinosaur which lived in what is now Mexico. Coahuilaceratops fossils have been recovered from strata of the Late Cretaceous Period (Campanian), around 72 Ma (million years ago). The type species is Coahuilaceratops magnacuerna. It was formally described in 2010, though it appeared as an informal designation (nomen nudum) as early as 2008.
Although they are incomplete, Coahuilaceratops is thought to possess the largest horns of any dinosaur currently known. Its horns are estimated to have been up to 4 feet (1.2m) long. A newly discovered four to five-ton dinosaur has the largest horns ever found on a dinosaur, with a set that were 4-feet-long each, according to paleontologists who unearthed the hefty herbivore in Mexico.
The name of the new species, Coahuilaceratops magnacuerna, translates in part to “great horned horny face,” and the dinosaur lives up to its description. In addition to the two enormous horns above each eye, it also had an unusual, rounded nose horn not seen before on any other dinosaur.
Based on the dinosaur’s remains, the researchers believe that it was rhinoceros-sized — about 22 feet long as an adult, 6 to 7 feet tall at the shoulder and hips, and with a 6-foot-long skull. Both males and females of the four-legged, plant-eating dinosaur had the massive horns, which were probably used to attract mates and to fight with rivals of the same species.
Although the dinosaur looked somewhat like a rhino, the horns were very different. Rhino horns are made of soft tissue, while Coahuilaceratops horns had a bony core surrounded by soft tissue, similar to the horns of modern sheep, goats and cattle.