Fun Crittendenceratops Facts For Kidsnasu

The Crittendenceratops is an extinct genus of horned dinosaurs that belonged to the Late Cretaceous period. The dinosaur flaunted an elaborate head frill and probably had horns on its snout.

The head frill of the Crittendenceratops has made them a close relative of the triceratops and they are the only discovered species of the nasutoceratopsini that has a head frill.

Their generic name of the new dinosaur is in honor of the place from where they were discovered and the specific name is after the person who discovered the bones for the first time. The suffix Ceratops is a Greek word that translates to horned face in English.

Their remains were located in the Fort Crittenden Formation of Arizona. The fossils of the new dinosaur of the Fort Crittenden Formation had these characteristic features similar to the Centrosaurines.

The frill on the head made them closest relatives to the triceratops that also live during the Late Cretaceous. However, differences in shape and bone structure resulted in ascribing the new-found species under a new group.

The new-found dinosaur was named by S.‭ ‬G.‭ ‬Dalman, S.‭ ‬G.‭ ‬Lucas, John-Paul Hodnett, and A.‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Lichtig‭ in 2018. To know more facts about the dinosaur, keep on reading these amazing facts.

For similar content, check out diabloceratops and nasutoceratops facts too.

Crittendenceratops Interesting Facts

How do you pronounce 'Crittendenceratops'?

The complex name of the new dinosaur Crittendenceratops is pronounced as  'Krit-ten--en-seh-rah-tops'. The type species name is Crittendenceratops krzyzanowskii.

What type of dinosaur was a Crittendenceratops?

The Crittendenceratops was a genus of the order Ornithischia, they were a member of the ornithischian clade. This new horned dinosaur was herbivorous in nature like almost all other ornithischians and horned dinosaurs.

They were classified as a member of the Ceratopsidae family and Centrosaurine subfamily. The feature that separates the ceratopsian from the other ornithischians is their large nasal horn and head frill.

In which geological period did the Crittendenceratops roam the earth?

The Crittendenceratops is a new-found genus whose presence dates back to the Late Cretaceous age. They were discovered from the Campanian rock layer of the Fort Crittenden Formation. It is believed that the dinosaur existed up to 73 million years ago on earth.

When did the Crittendenceratops become extinct?

The Crittendenceratops is a Late Cretaceous dinosaur, they lived during the Campanian age of the Cretaceous epoch. They became extinct around 73 million years ago.

Where did a Crittendenceratops live?

The Crittendenceratops fossils were recovered from the Fort Crittenden Formation of Arizona. Fossil remains were also recorded from other parts of North America. The fossil was yielded from the margins of a great lake in Tuscon, Arizona.

What was a Crittendenceratops' habitat?

The Crittendenceratops preferred to live by the side of large water bodies. They generally inhabited areas by the margins of a great lake in the conifer and palm forests. Unlike the current arid weather of Arizona, in the Cretaceous period, it was quite warm. So the Crittendenceratops preferred living in subtropical regions.

Who did a Crittendenceratops live with?

While excavating the fossils, two members of Crittendenceratops were found together in the Fort Crittenden Formation. This ignites a possibility of these herbivores living by forming social groups.

How long did a Crittendenceratops live?

The new-found Crittendenceratops dinosaur is an extinct genus of the upper Cretaceous. They lived till 73 million years ago on earth.

How did they reproduce?

The method of breeding was definitely oviparous for the species. They laid eggs from which the baby dinosaurs appeared. No other information was gathered regarding the reproduction process of Crittendenceratops.

Crittendenceratops Fun Facts

What did a Crittendenceratops look like?

The Crittendenceratops had hook-like curved flanges on the nasal portion of the frill. The hook was possibly curved towards the front as the fossil suggests. The frill was simple but it was heavily detailed by extensive protrusions from the side as well as from the base.

How many bones did a Crittendenceratops have?

The total number of bones present in the body of the new-found Crittendenceratops is unknown, they are known only from the partial skull remains of two individuals.

How did they communicate?

Dinosaurs communicated either vocally or visually.

How big was a Crittendenceratops?

The Crittendenceratops was around 11 ft (3.3 m) long. The Crittendenceratops size is two times smaller than Triceratops.

How fast could a Crittendenceratops move?

The speed of the Crittendenceratops has not been determined currently, however the structure of their body suggests that this horned dinosaur was not that fast.

How much did a Crittendenceratops weigh?

The Crittendenceratops had a robust physical built, they weighed up to 1500 lb (680 kg).

What were the male and female names of the species?

Males and females do not have any specific names, both of them were called Crittendenceratops.

What would you call a baby Crittendenceratops?

A baby Crittendenceratops is referred to as a nestling or hatchling.

What did they eat?

All horned dinosaurs were herbivorous in nature. Similarly, the newly discovered horned dinosaur, Crittendenceratops, also consumed a herbivorous diet.

How aggressive were they?

Even though the new dinosaur was a herbivore, the horned dinosaur had an elaborate frill on the head, which made them look frightening. They possibly used their frill to attack other dinosaurs when they became aggressive.

Did you know...

The differences in shape and bone of the Crittendenceratops frill distinguish them from the other horned dinosaurs.

What does the name 'Crittendenceratops' mean?

The Crittendenceratops is a group of new dinosaurs that were discovered from Arizona, they belonged to the Campanian stage of the Cretaceous period. The generic name Crittendenceratops indicates the place where the new-found dinosaur fossils were first located together with describing the most characteristic feature of the dinosaur.

The bones and the skull elements of the new member of the Ceratopsian family were discovered from the Fort Crittenden Formation of Arizona. The name Crittendenceratops is derived from the rock formation from where their bones were yielded.

The suffix ceratops in their generic name has a Greek origin. It means horned face, which refers to the head frill of the new-found dinosaur.

The species name Crittendenceratops krzyzanowskii honors the late research associate of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science named Stan Krzyzanowski. Krzyzanowski was the first one who took the initiative for the reconstruction of the bones of the new-found species and ascribed them to a new genus on the basis of their head frill.

Crittendenceratops vs. Triceratops

The Crittendenceratops and Triceratops were close relatives and both of them lived during the Campanian stage of the Cretaceous. They were the herbivorous horned dinosaurs of that age, but they did not exist together.

Triceratops fossils were recovered before the Crittendenceratops, it was evident from the fossils that the former lived from about 65-67 million years ago. The new-found Crittendenceratops lived six million years before the Triceratops. They were half the size of Triceratops.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly dinosaur facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these Bravoceratops facts and Zuniceratops facts pages.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable triceratops skeleton coloring pages.