Mojoceratops

Mo-jo-seh-ra-tops.
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Liam Carter

Paleoanthropologist

Liam Carter explores the roots of humanity by studying early human fossils and artifacts. His ground-breaking work has provided a deeper understanding of our ancestors' lifestyles and social structures.

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Name

Mojoceratops ‭(‬Mojo horned face‭)‬.

Phonetic

Mo-jo-seh-ra-tops.

Named By

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Ornithoschia,‭ ‬Ceratopsia,‭ ‬Ceratopsidae,‭ ‬Chasmosaurinae.

Diet

Herbivore.

Species

M.‭ ‬perifania‭ (‬type‭)‬

Size

Uncertain due to incomplete fossil material,‭ ‬but possibly up to‭ ‬5‭ ‬-‭ ‬6‭ ‬meters long based upon comparison to Chasmosaurus‭ ‬-‭ ‬refer to main text for details.

Known locations

Canada,‭ ‬Alberta‭ ‬-‭ ‬Dinosaur park Formation.

Time Period

Campanian of‭ ‬the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Eight partial skeletons.

In Depth

       Mojoceratops was discovered by a close examination of some skulls that had been assigned to the more well Chasmosaurus.‭ ‬The more the skulls were studied the more differences were discovered,‭ ‬resulting in the creation of a new genus.‭ ‬The palaeontologists who were looking the skulls over initially came up with name Mojoceratops when they were brainstorming ideas.‭ ‬However when they realised that a mojo is actually a charm for attracting members of the opposite sex they found the name to be very fitting as ceratopisan most probably used their frills for that exact purpose.‭ ‬Additionally the frill dips in the middle making the two halves form a structure that loosely resembles a heart shape.

Further Reading

– Mojoceratops perifania, A New Chasmosaurine Ceratopsid from the Late Campanian of Western Canada. – Journal of Paleontology 84 (4): 681–694. – Nicholas R. Longrich – 2010.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT