protoceratops habitat
It was a common dinosaur from Cretaceous Mongolia. Under this reasoning, Protoceratopsidae consists of Bagaceratops, Breviceratops, and Protoceratops. Protoceratops, meaning "First-Horned Face" is a ceratopsian dinosaur that lived in Mongolia during the Late Cretaceous, 75 million years ago. P. andrewsi bore two small, peg to spike-like teeth that were located on the underside of each premaxilla. Named primarily as designation of a similar genus to Ceratops, meaning "before Ceratops", it is a genus considered on many platforms to be misclassified. Found as fossils in deposits from the Late Cretaceous Period (about 100 million to 65.5 million years ago) of eastern Asia and North America, Oviraptor was about 1.8 metres (6 feet) long and walked on two long, well-developed hind limbs. [21] In 2006 North American paleontologists Peter Makovicky and Mark A. Norell suggested that Bainoceratops may be synonymous with Protoceratops as most of the traits used to separate the former from the latter have been reported from other ceratopsians including Protoceratops itself, and they are more likely to fall within the wide intraspecific variation range of the concurring P. [95][96], Protoceratops is known from most localities of the Djadokhta Formation in Mongolia, which dates back to the Late Cretaceous about 71 million to 75 million years ago, being deposited during a rapid sequence of polarity The rostral bone was devoid of teeth, high and triangular in shape. As Protoceratops was a relatively basal (primitive) ceratopsian, the finding may imply that other ceratopsians provided care for their young as well. The centra were large and predominantly amphiplatian (flat on both facets) and circular when seen from the front. However, it is now believed that they cathemeral. As the name implies, they represent elongated dinosaur eggs, including some of referred ones to Protoceratops. [39] Tereshchenko in 2021 fully described the axial skeleton of this specimen.[40]. Griffins were described as lion-sized quadrupeds with large claws and a raptor-bird-like beak; they laid their eggs in nests on the ground. The skull is also what makes Triceratops so memorable, with its bony frill and three . However, Barsbold pointed out that there no related traces within the overall specimen in order to support this latter interpretation. Lee and colleagues concluded that even though the tail morphology of Koreaceratopsand other basal ceratopsiansdoes not argues against swimming habits, the cited evidence for it is insufficient. Protoceratops is the one dinosaur that every fossil hunting expedition finds in Mongolia. Dodson found most of these characters to be highly variable across specimens, especially the frill which he interpreted to have had a bigger role in displaying behavior than simply serving as a site of masticatory muscles. The first point was supported by the numerous anatomical differences between protoceratopsids and psittacosaurids, most notably the extreme reduction of some hand digits in the latter groupa trait much less pronounced in protoceratopsids. About the size of a large sheep, Protoceratops is a fairly common and well-studied species of dinosaur that would have lived in what is now Mongolia's Gobi Desert. . These neck frill morphologies differ from those of Protoceratops from the Djadokhta Formation in the adjacent dinosaur locality Tugrikin Shire. At their lower region, the scapulae meet the coracoids. Hone and colleagues in particular suggested that juveniles would aggregate primarily as a defense against predators and an increased protection from the multiple adults within the group. Each egg was elongated and hard-shelled, and due to the proximity and high abundance of Protoceratops in the formation, these eggs were believed at the time to belong to this dinosaur. Fact or Fiction. To accommodate this equipment, the skull of Protoceratops was almost comically large compared to the rest of its body, giving it a distinctly "top . [2] This would later result in the interpretation of Oviraptor as an egg-thief. The team also suggested that a swimming adaptation could have been useful to avoid aquatic predators, such as crocodylomorphs. [5][46][47], The dorsal vertebrae were similar in shape and size. A nest full of dinosaur babiesfossilized in their "last, bug-eyed, terrified minutes"suggests Protoceratops parents nurtured their young. Because it is generally accepted that most fossil specimens at Tugriken Shireh were preserved by rapidly migrating dunes and sandstorms, Fastovsky with colleagues suggested that the lee side borders of the nest would have been the area where air was sand-free and consequently, all young Protoceratops may have struggled to reach this area, resulting in their final burial and eventual death. [50], Furthermore, with the re-examinations of Turanoceratops in 2009 and Zuniceratopstwo critical ceratopsian taxa regarding the evolutionary history of ceratopsidsin 2010 it was concluded that the origin of ceratopsids is unrelated to, and older than the fossil record of Protoceratops and relatives. It was characterized by simple fibrolamellar bonebony tissue with an irregular, fibrous texture and filled with blood vesselswith prominent woven-fibered bone and low bone remodeling. On the classification of dinosaur eggs", "Theropod and protoceratopsian dinosaur eggs from the Cretaceous of Mongolia and Kazakhstan", "A theropod dinosaur embryo and the affinities of the Flaming Cliffs Dinosaur eggs", "Phylogenetic analysis of reproductive traits of maniraptoran theropods and its implications for egg parataxonomy", "Dinosaur incubation periods directly determined from growth-line counts in embryonic teeth show reptilian-grade development", "The lost Protoceratops mummy - Addendum", "The exquisitely preserved integument of Psittacosaurus and the scaly skin of ceratopsian dinosaurs", "A protoceratopsid skeleton with an associated track from the Upper Cretaceous of Mongolia", "Appendicular skeleton of Protoceratops andrewsi (Dinosauria, Ornithischia): comparative morphology, ontogenetic changes, and the implications for non-ceratopsid ceratopsian locomotion", "Comparative anatomy of selected basal ceratopsian dentitions", "Key to Protoceratopoid Vertebrae (Ceratopsia, Dinosauria) from Mongolia", "A Method for Estimation of Lateral and Vertical Mobility of Platycoelous Vertebrae of Tetrapods", "Structural Features of Neural Spines of the Caudal Vertebrae of Protoceratopoids (Ornithischia: Neoceratopsia)", "A rationale for phylogenetic definitions, with application to the higher level taxonomy of Dinosauria", "Turanoceratops tardabilisthe first ceratopsid dinosaur from Asia", "Zuniceratops christopheri: The North American Ceratopsid Sister Taxon Reconstructed on the Basis of New Data", "A New Leptoceratopsid (Ornithischia, Ceratopsia) with a Unique Ischium from the Upper Cretaceous of Shandong Province, China", "The postcranial skeleton of Bagaceratops (Ornithischia: Neoceratopsia) from the Baruungoyot Formation (Upper Cretaceous) in Hermiin Tsav of southwestern Gobi, Mongolia", "A new oviraptorid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Upper Cretaceous of Bayan Mandahu, Inner Mongolia", "New protoceratopsid specimens improve the age correlation of the Upper Cretaceous Gobi Desert strata", "The Jaw Musculature in Protoceratops and in Other Ceratopsians", "The many myths, some old, some new, of dinosaurology", "Jaw Mechanics in Basal Ceratopsia (Ornithischia, Dinosauria)", "Repeated Evolution of Divergent Modes of Herbivory in Non-avian Dinosaurs", "Positive allometry for exaggerated structures in the ceratopsian dinosaur Protoceratops andrewsi supports socio-sexual signaling", "Morphological changes of Protoceratops andrewsi skull with ontogenetic processes", "Bone histology of Protoceratops andrewsi from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia and its biological implications", "A Reconstruction of the Locomotion of Protoceratops", "The Function of Large Eyes in Protoceratops: A Nocturnal Ceratopsian? [26], However, also during 1994, Norell and colleagues reported and briefly described a fossilized theropod embryo inside an egg (MPC-D 100/971) from the Djadokhta Formation. According to the journal article, the Gobi "preserves an arid habitat of sand dunes, with little fresh water apart from oases and arroyos [gully cut by water]."4 The carbonate in the Gobi sandstone suggests a time when it was subjected to mineral-laden water, consistent with the time of the global Flood. [97] Dominant sediments at Djadokhta include dominant reddish-orange and pale orange to light gray, medium to fine-grained sands and sandstones, caliche, and sparse fluvial (river-deposited) processes. The specific name, kozlowskii, is in tribute to the Polish paleontologist Roman Kozowski. He considered a swimming adaptation unlikely given the arid settings of the Djadokhta Formation. For instance, the Protoceratops has a semi-erect stance and its skull is nearly horizontal, which could have not been possible if the animal was already dead. Individuals with a high nasal horn, massive prefrontals, and frontoparietal depression were tentatively determined as males. The outlines of eggs and embryos indicates ellipsoid-shaped eggs in life with dimensions about 12cm (120mm) long and 6cm (60mm) wide. [97][99] The Bayn Dzak member (mostly the Bayn Dzak locality) has yielded the dromaeosaurids Halszkaraptor and Velociraptor mongoliensis;[101][102] oviraptorid Oviraptor;[3] ankylosaurid Pinacosaurus grangeri;[93] and troodontid Saurornithoides. The skull of the type species, P. andrewsi, had an average total length of nearly 50cm (500mm). . They identified Protoceratops as an ornithischian dinosaur closely related to ceratopsians representing a possible common ancestor between ankylosaurs and ceratopsians. Their neural spines were broad, not coosified, and rather consistent in length. Sowiak and team also suggested that the flat and wide hand unguals (claw bone) of Protoceratops may have been useful for moving on loose terrain (such as sand) without sinking. [19] Both species can be differentiated by the following characteristics: The skull of Protoceratops was relatively large compared to its body and robustly built. Like its larger and geologically younger relative Triceratops, this herbivore also had a bony . Lastly, he restored the course of the fight with the Protoceratops power-slamming the Velociraptor, which used its feet claws to damage the throat and belly regions and its hand claws to grasp the herbivore's head. Since this event likely occurred after the death of both animals or during a point where movement was not possible, and the Protoceratops is missing other body elements, Barsbold suggested that scavengers were the most likely authors. Based on these components, the paleoenvironments of the Djadokhta Formation are interpreted as having a hot, semiarid climate with large dune fields/sand dunes and several short-lived water bodies, similar to the modern Gobi Desert. [59], In 2009 Kyo Tanque and team suggested that basal ceratopsians, such as protoceratopsids, were most likely low browsers due to their relatively small body size. The "horn" and frill were highly variable in shape and size across individuals of the same species, but there is no evidence of sexual dimorphism. It was formally described in 2010, though it appeared as an informal designation (nomen nudum . The co-workers also noted that the Fox Site Protoceratops preserves associated traces in the encasing sediment, indicative of necrophagous activity after the animal was buried. She cited myths such as cyclopes, giants, griffins and minotaurs. The predentary (frontmost bone) was very pointed and elongated, having a V-shaped symphyseal (bone union) region at the front. The holotype (IMM 95BM1/1) and paratype (IMM 96BM1/4) specimens consist of large skulls lacking body remains. SummaryStats. This genus was based on a few dorsal (back) vertebrae that were stated to differ from those of Protoceratops. While Andy and his colleagues were able to show that the frill of Protoceratops likely evolved as a result of social behaviour between members of the species as opposed to, for example, defence, it is difficult to be conclusive that . [13] Specimens from this locality are usually found in articulation, suggesting possible mass mortality events. Ceratopsians (including protoceratopsids), along with Euoplocephalus, Hungarosaurus, parkosaurid, ornithopod and heterodontosaurine dinosaurs, were found to be in the former category, indicating that Protoceratops and relatives had strong bite forces and relied mostly on its jaws to process food. More specifically, Mikhailov stated that P. sincerum and P. minimum were laid by Protoceratops, and P. fluxuosum by Breviceratops. The nests are small, bowl-shaped depressions that contain as many as 15 babies, each about 6 inches long (see Fig. Witton goes on to point out that the wings of traditional griffins are positioned above the shoulder blades, not behind the neck as the frills of Protoceratops, that the bodies of griffins much more closely resemble the bodies of modern big cats than they do those of Protoceratops, and that the gold deposits of central Asia occur hundreds of kilometers from the known Protoceratops fossil remains, among many other inconsistencies. On the other hand, Hone and team argued that if neck frills were instead used for protective purposes, a large frill may have acted as an aposematic (warning) signal to predators. The ischium was the longest bone of the pelvic girdle. Makovicky and team also stated that as the maximum/radical changes on the neck frill and nasal horn were present in most adult individuals, trying to differentiate sexual dimorphism (anatomical differences between sexes) in adult Protoceratops may not be a good practice. La scoperta, straordinaria, avviene nel 1971 nel deserto del Gobi, il pi immane scrigno di dinosauri della Terra, grazie alle ottime condizioni di conservazione e all'habitat ideale che ospita per 170 milioni di anni la specie pi longeva della storia del mondo (l'homo sapiens esiste da 30 mila anni, una vergogna a confronto). The individuals of this block were identified as a P. andrewsi and V. mongoliensis. [13], Brown and Schlaikjer in 1940 upon their large analysis of Protoceratops noted the potential presence of sexual dimorphism among specimens in P. andrewsi, concluding that this condition could be entirely subjective or represent actual differences between sexes. Protoceratops andrewsi. This specimen was later described in 1940 by Brown and Schlaikjer, who discussed the nature of the matrix portion. The two last dorsal ribs were the smallest, and the last of them was in contact with the internal surfaes of the ilium. [63], In 2017 Mototaka Saneyoshi with team analyzed several Protoceratops specimens from the Djadokhta Formation, noting that from perinate/juvenile to subadult individuals, the parietal and squamosal bones increased their sides to posterior sides of the skull. El Protoceratops fue de alguna forma el primer ceratopsiano real. Both parietals were coossified (fused), creating a long ridge on the center of the frill. Such skull traits were regarded as marked [[Genetic variability Protoceratops is a special dinosaur because they had really large eyes. In the Cretaceous period (145 to 66 million years ago), this region . Based on previous assemblages and the two blocks, the team determined that Protoceratops was a social dinosaur that formed herds throughout its life and such herds would have varied in composition, with some including adults, sub-adults, siblings from a single nest or local members of a herd joining shortly after hatching.
