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Avaceratops

Dinosaur profile

Avaceratops

HerbivoreLate CretaceousCeratopsian

Pronunciation

A-vah-seh-rah-tops

Meaning

Ava horned face

Type

Ceratopsian

Length

2.4 - 4.5 meters long

Period

Late Cretaceous

Years

80-75 million years ago

Location

USA

Diet

Herbivore

About Avaceratops

Avaceratops is a genus of ceratopsid dinosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous Period, about 72-66 million years ago. It was a small to medium-sized herbivore, with an estimated length of about 5-6 feet and a weight of about 50-100 pounds. Avaceratops had a large, triangular head with a strong beak and a bony frill on the back of its skull. It also had a pair of short, curved horns on its frill, as well as a pair of short, curved horns on its snout. Avaceratops had a sturdy, quadrupedal build, with four sturdy legs and a long, heavy tail. Its body was probably covered in a layer of tough, scaly skin.

Avaceratops was discovered in Canada in the 1920s, and was named by paleontologists in 1927. It is considered a relatively primitive ceratopsid, and is thought to be closely related to other early ceratopsids such as Leptoceratops and Protoceratops. Avaceratops is known from a number of well-preserved fossil specimens, including several partial skeletons and skulls, which have helped paleontologists learn more about the anatomy and behavior of this dinosaur.

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