Ceratosaurus was a medium sized predator from the Late Jurassic(145-160 million years ago). It's remains have
been found in North America, Europe, and Africa making it a very wide ranging dinosaur.
Description []
Ceratosaurus is a very distinct dinosaur. It get's it's name from the blade like horn on it's nose. It also had two smaller horns above each of it's eyes. The function of these features is debatable, but most agree they were for display. Ceratosaurus also had four fingers on each hand.
Size[]
Ceratosaurus is a large predatory dinosaur. Minimally, it was 16-20 feet(5-6 meters) in length and 1,000 kg(2,200 lbs) in weight. Isolated fossils however point to much larger animals, perhaps 23-26 feet(7-8 meters) or so in lenth and 1,500-2,000 kg(3,300-4,400 lbs) in weight.
Ceratosaurus size comparison
Teeth[]
Ceratosaurus had some of the longest teeth compared to overall body size of all the theropods. Ceratosaurus had teeth over 6-7 inches in length. They were also very blade like and perfect for slashing flesh.
Ceratosaurus skull
Hunting and Diet[]
Ceratosaurus would have hunted a variety of prey animals. Stegosaurs, hypilophodonts,Iguanadonts, and even small sauropods would have been on the menu. It's possible that Ceratosaurus huntd in pairs or trios to help bring down prey.
Competition[]
Ceratosaurus would have had a lot of competition. There were a number of other large theropods like Allosaurus and Torvosaurus. Smaller carnivores were present as well.
In Popular Culture[]
Ceratosaurus is often featured in dinosaur media. It's distinct look helped propel it into the movie industry. It's been featured in a number of movies, it's most recent being Jurassic Park III. Documentaries such as Jurassic Fight Club and When Dinosaurs Roamed America also had Ceratosaurus. Books and TV shows have also given Ceratosaurus some star power.
Ceratosaurus in Jurassic Park III
See Also[]
Gallery[]
.jpg "Ceratosaure (2).jpg (189 KB)")
