Pachycephalosaurus

Pachycephalosaurus

▪ dinosaur genus
 genus of large and unusual dinosaurs found as fossils in deposits of North America dating to the Late Cretaceous Epoch (100 million to 66 million years ago). Pachycephalosaurus,which grew to be about 5 m (16 feet) long, was a biped with strong hind limbs and much less developed forelimbs. The unusual and distinctive feature of Pachycephalosaurusis the high, domelike skull formed by a thick mass of solid bone grown over the tiny brain. This bone growth covered the temporal openings that were characteristic of the skulls of related forms. Abundant bony knobs in front and at the sides of the skull further added to the unusual appearance. Pachycephalosaurusand closely related forms are known as the bone-headed, or dome-headed, dinosaurs. These dinosaurs, which are also found in Mongolia, had a variety of skull shapes. In the most basal forms, the dome was not thick but flat. Late forms had thick domes shaped like kneecaps, or a large sagittal crest with spikes and knobs pointing down and back from the sides of the skull. It has been suggested that these animals were head butters like living rams, but the configuration of the domes does not support this hypothesis. Flank-butting remains a possibility in some species, but a more likely function in most was species recognition or display.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Pachycephalosaurus — Rekonstruktion von Pachycephalosaurus Zeitraum Obere Kreide 71 bis 65 Mio. Jahre Fundorte …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Pachycephalosaurus — † Pachycephalosaurus …   Википедия

  • Pachycephalosaurus — Pachycephalosaurus …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Pachycéphalosaurus — Pachycephalosaurus Pachycephalosaurus …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Pachycephalosaurus —   Pachycephalosaurus Escala temporal: Cretácico superior …   Wikipedia Español

  • Pachycephalosaurus — *Taxobox name = Pachycephalosaurus fossil range = Late Cretaceous image caption = Skull of Pachycephalosaurus at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. regnum = Animalia phylum = Chordata classis = Sauropsida superordo = Dinosauria ordo …   Wikipedia

  • Pachycephalosaurus — Pachycephalosaurus …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Pachycephalosaurus wyomingensis — Pachycephalosaurus Rekonstruktion von Pachycephalosaurus Zeitraum Obere Kreide 71 bis 65 Mio. Jahre Fossilfundorte USA …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • pachycephalosaurus — noun bipedal herbivore having 10 inches of bone atop its head; largest boneheaded dinosaur ever found • Syn: ↑pachycephalosaur • Hypernyms: ↑bone headed dinosaur …   Useful english dictionary

  • suborder Pachycephalosaurus — noun boneheaded dinosaurs; late Cretaceous • Hypernyms: ↑animal order • Member Holonyms: ↑Marginocephalia, ↑suborder Marginocephalia, ↑marginocephalian • Member Meronyms: ↑bone headed dinosaur …   Useful english dictionary

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