Centrosaurus

Centrosaurus was a heavily built quadrupedal ceratopsian that flourished during the Late Cretaceous in ancient Alberta, Canada. Reaching lengths between 5 and 6 metres and weighing around two tonnes, it possessed a large nasal horn that curved slightly forward or backwards depending on maturity. Its moderately sized frill was adorned with a pair of prominent forward-curving hooks along the top rim. Hundreds of complete and articulated skeletons have been recovered from extensive bonebeds in Dinosaur Provincial Park. These catastrophic assemblages suggest that large herds may have drowned together while attempting to cross flooded rivers during seasonal migrations. Centrosaurus probably spent its days browsing on tough terrestrial foliage, using a specialised slicing beak to process ferns, palms, and cycads. Extensive skin impressions reveal that its body was clad in non-overlapping, pebbly scales.

Mass bonebeds containing hundreds of Centrosaurus individuals provide clear evidence of herd behaviour.

Where and when

Centrosaurus lived in the Late Cretaceous, from 76.5 to 75.5 million years ago (Campanian age). Its remains come from Canada, in the Dinosaur Park Formation.

The numbers

Length 5.5 m (estimates run from 5 to 6 m). Mass about 1.9 t. Hip height about 1.8 m. That is 3.2 human-lengths, or 0.49 of a double-decker bus. These are estimates from near-complete skeleton; fields marked estimated by the site are length, mass, hip height.

Compare Centrosaurus with a bus Place on the timeline