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Atlantis536 — Coahuilaceratops (MZP)
#dinosaur #herbivore #prehistoric #zoo #coahuilaceratops
Published: 2019-02-01 08:07:59 +0000 UTC; Views: 1626; Favourites: 10; Downloads: 1
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Description
Scientific name: Coahuilaceratops magnacuernaDiet: plants (at the Zoo they are fed leafy vegetables and fruit)
Projected natural lifespan: 18 years
Length: 6 meters (~20 feet)
Weight: 3 tonnes (~3.3 tons)
Locality: Coahuila, Mexico (Cerro del Pueblo Formation), 72.5 Ma (Late Cretaceous Campanian)
Exhibit: Horn-Face Range
About:
Coahuilaceratops is paleontologically significant for two reasons. First, it is the first known ceratopsian dinosaur from Mexico, and second, it has the longest horns of any known dinosaur, reaching up to 1.2 meters (~4 feet) long.
Description and behavior:
Coahuilaceratops was quite a big ceratopsian, and definitely one you wouldn't want to mess with. These animals are very temperamental, often charging at objects at first sight if they aren't well known to them. This is further increased during the mating season, when the frill begins to change to a brighter color. During this period, the males with charge at almost anything they see, even other members of their own kind. All ceratopsians do this, though since Coahuilaceratops has the longest horns they are the most dangerous. Another distinctive feature of the Coahuilaceratops is their skin. It is tough, similar to a rhino's, interspersed with small osteoderms. Unlike most ceratopsians, these osteoderms are surrounded by small rings of color. These rings can change color depending on the dinosaur's mood. When they are still inconspicuous against the color of the body, they're still quite docile, but when they're bright red, watch out!
At the Zoo:
The Horn-Face Range houses six Coahuilaceratops.
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The behavior is inspired by bulls, rhinos, chameleons and blue-ringed octopi.
The skeletal I used belongs to Roman Garcia Mora.
The mass estimate comes from a deviation by CamusAltamirano .
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Comments: 3
Although the anatomy is pretty spot on, there are still some things that would improve it. There should be "cheeks", but not ones covering the entire cheek area, but like this: There should also be more large scales across the body (as seen in Triceratops and Chasmosaurus) and you could add some rectangular scales on the belly (as seen in Triceratops), but that's up to you, as that's the only taxon where we've seen them. The horns could be larger, with the keratin sheath being 25% bigger than the horn core. As for color, maybe some stripes on the frill or small white spots would help, and the body could have a deeper shade of brown on the top, with it fading into a light chocolate brown.
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Thanks for the suggestion. I edited the picture accordingly.
Do you have other suggestions for improving my other MZP pictures?
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Wow, it's really good! Sure, but these comments take lots of time an research, so please be patient.
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