Pachycephalosaurus
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Pachycephalosaurus definitely earns the name "thick-headed reptile". The top of its skull has an extremely thickened bony dome and is ornamented with knobs and horns. In fact, domes comprise the majority of known Pachycephalosaurus fossils! Only a few body fossils are known, mostly from juveniles and subadults. Several of said juveniles have been given their own names, Dracorex and Stygimoloch, which are now invalid. Endless debate has emerged over whether the domes were used in headbutting or not. There's evidence in the form of injuries that the heads were being butted into something. Head-on charges are probably unlikely, though. The rest of Pachycephalosaurus's body was similar to that of other pachycephalosaurids, and it was similar to them in lifestyle. It's primarily herbivorous - although its teeth resembles those of the omnivorous Stenonychosaurus. Most of our Pachycephalosaurus can be found in the Gladiators of the Mesozoic exhibit. They're most active at sunrise and near sunset and spend the majority of their time concealed in the exhibit's dense foliage. Things are fairly calm until the rutting season (mid-November through January), during which they will swing their heads at each other. One subadult, Kirk, lives in his own paddock in the Hell Creek section, having been attacked by the others when young. He likes neck scratches. |
Scientific name Location Time Length Height Weight Diet |