Name:
Chasmosaurus (Greek for "cleft lizard"); pronounced KAZZ-moe-SORE-us
Habitat:
Woodlands of western North America
Historical Period:
Late Cretaceous (75-70 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 15 feet long and 2 tons
Diet:
Plants
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Huge, rectangular frill on neck; small horns on face
About Chasmosaurus:
A close relative of Triceratops and Pentaceratops, Chasmosaurus was distinguished by the shape of its enormous frill, which spread out over its head in a rectangular shape. Paleontologists speculate that this giant awning of bone and skin may have taken on bright colors during mating season--kind of like a movie screen for the opposite sex!
Perhaps because the addition of huge horns would have been simply too much (even for the dinosaur age), Chasmosaurus had relatively short, blunt horns for a ceratopsian, certainly nothing approaching the dangerous weapons of its herbivorous cousins.
