Stegoceras
Stegoceras was a small dinosaur with a thick, bony dome on its head. It lived in North America during the Late Cretaceous period, about 77 to 74 million years ago. Scientists think it used its dome for head-butting or showing off to other Stegoceras.1
When did it live?
How big was it?
How big was Stegoceras compared to YOU?
Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.
Fun facts
Stegoceras had a thick, smooth dome on top of its skull that grew bigger as it got older.1
The back of its skull had a shelf with small horns made from knobby bumps.1
It had a stiff tail and a broad pelvis, which might have held a big gut for digesting plants.1
Stegoceras was one of the first dome-headed dinosaurs ever discovered, known from skull domes found in 1898.1
Its teeth were small and serrated, good for shearing plants but not for chewing tough fibers.1
Scientists once thought some flat-headed pachycephalosaurs were different species, but they may just be young Stegoceras.1
Most asked questions about Stegoceras
?How big was Stegoceras?
About 2 to 2.5 metres (6.6 to 8.2 ft) long and weighed around 10 to 40 kilograms (22 to 88 lb).1
?What did Stegoceras eat?
It was an herbivore, eating plants. Its small, serrated teeth were good for shearing leaves, seeds, and fruit.12
?Did Stegoceras really head-butt?
Scientists are not sure. Some think it used its dome for head-butting or flank-butting, while others think it was for showing off or recognizing its own kind.13
Ask Rex about Stegoceras
Rex only answers questions about this page. 3 questions a day.
Rex is an AI and can make mistakes. He runs on servers in the EU and questions are never saved. Never type your name or other personal things.
Myth buster
Myth: Many people think Stegoceras used its dome only for head-butting like a battering ram.
Truth: Scientists debate whether the dome was used for head-butting, flank-butting, or just for display to attract mates.1
For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Stegoceras
- Named by
- Lambe 19024
- Group
- Dome-heads
- Family / clade
- Eupachycephalosauria4
- Classification
- Ornithischia > Pachycephalosauria4
- Age of the rocks
- 84 to 66 million years (Campanian / Maastrichtian)4
- Rock formations
- Judith River, Dinosaur Park, Fruitland4
- Countries
- USA, Canada4
- Fossil records
- 46 in the Paleobiology Database4
- Also known as
- Gravitholus, Hanssuessia, Ornatotholus (older names now counted as the same animal)4
- Discovery
- Stegoceras was named by paleontologist Lawrence Lambe in 1902, based on partial skull domes found in Alberta, Canada, in 1898 and 1901.1
- Still debated
- Scientists are still unsure whether the species Stegoceras novomexicanum from New Mexico really belongs to Stegoceras or to a different dinosaur.1
Where the facts come from
- Stegoceras (en.wikipedia.org)
- Stegoceras | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
- Stegoceras- Enchanted Learning Software (enchantedlearning.com)
- Stegoceras in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at hello@dinowiki.app and we will fix it.
Rex is hungry! Dino Wiki is a dad's project for his dino-loving son, free with no ads. Grown-ups can feed Rex a snack to help keep it online.Feed Rex
Pachycephalosaurus
Prenocephale
Sphaerotholus
Foraminacephale
Brontotholus
Colepiocephale
Triceratops
Velociraptor
Spinosaurus
Ankylosaurus
Parasaurolophus