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| Creature information | |
| Scientific name : | Zuniceratops christopheri |
| Time period : | Middle Cretaceous |
| Primary diet : | Herbivore |
| In the documentary | |
Zuniceratops ('Zuni-horned face') was a ceratopsian dinosaur from the Mid to Late Cretaceous Period of what is now New Mexico, United States. Zuniceratops appears to have been about the size of a cow, roughly 3 to 3.5 meters long (10-11 ft) and 1 meter (3.3 ft) tall at the hips. It probably weighed 100 to 150 kilograms (200 to 250 lb), making it substantially smaller than most ceratopsians. The skull bears a well-developed pair of brow horns, similar to those of Chasmosaurs and primitive centrosaurs, but the nose horn is absent. The frill was a thin, broad, shield-like structure. It bore a pair of large holes but lacked epoccipital bones, as in Protoceratops. Overall, the anatomy is much more primitive than that of the ceratopsids, but more advanced than in protoceratopsids.
In When Dinosaurs Roamed America[]
Fighting pair
Zuniceratops was in the Middle Cretaceous segment. One had been killed by raptors and the hungry dinosaurs are feasting. The raptors chase off a lone Dromaeosaurus as it tries to steal some meat. Later, an old male and younger male Zuniceratops start fighting. The old Zuniceratops gets gored in the frill. A raptor then attacks and use their toe claws to slash its flesh as well as their hand claws. But another Zuniceratops headbutts it. The whole pack run away. Later, just before the fire, the herd run off and the raptors finish off the old male. They keep running. Later, the narrator says they will evolve into the biggest and most famous ceratopsians, Triceratops!
Trivia[]
In addition to Triceratops, Zuniceratops had many other descendants, which include Einiosaurus, Styracosaurus, Torosaurus, Pachyrhinosaurus and Centrosaurus. There was also Chasmosaurus, Sinoceratops, Kosmoceratops, Anchiceratops, Pentaceratops and Monoclonius.
Errors[]
- Zuniceratops may have had feather-like quills on it's back, something the When Dinosaurs Roamed America Zuniceratops didn't have, but this is not confirmed.