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| Dinosaur Printouts | AllAboutDinosaurs.com Torosaurus |
Animal Printouts |
Torosaurus lived during the late Cretaceous period, about 70-65 million years ago, in what is now western North America.
Diet: Torosaurus was an herbivore, a plant eater (a primary consumer). It probably ate cycads, palms, and other low-lying plants with its tough, toothless beak. Torosaurus could chew well with its cheek teeth (like other Ceratopsians, but unlike most other dinosaurs).
Anatomy: Torosaurus was a very large ceratopsian; it was 21-25 ft (6.2-7.6 m) long and up to 7 ft (2 m) tall at the hips. It had the second-largest skull of any animal, 8.5 ft (2.8 m) long (a recently-found Pentaceratops skull is larger). It had a toothless beak, a short tail, and a heavy body. Torosaurus had a large bony plate (called a frill) projecting from the back of its skull. One short horn above its parrot-like beak and two longer horns above its eyes provided protection from predators. The horns were possibly also used in courtship rivalry.
Fossils and Name: Torosaurus was discovered by John Bell Hatcher and was named in 1891 by paleontologist Othniel C. Marsh.
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