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Description
One of the most famous dinosaurs of all time, Triceratops lived in North America during the Late Cretaceous. It was one of the last new dinosaur genera to evolve before the extinction event that wiped out the dinosaurs. They were mostly or completely herbivorous, and fed mainly on palms, cycads and ferns.

When fully grown, Triceratops measured around 8-9 metres in length and weighed an estimated 6-12 tons.

As with all ceratopsian dinosaurs, the purpose of the horns and frill is something of a mystery. Triceratops in particular is unusual in that its frill does not have a pair of openings on it. Palaeontologist Jack Horner has suggested that the frill may have been covered in keratin, perhaps brightly coloured. In which case it would probably have been used for display.

It's possible that they may have used their long brow horns for defence, and in territorial battles (the frills of some individuals show signs of having scraped against the horns of other Triceratops). A Triceratops horn was found with a healed bite mark from a Tyrannosaurus rex, indicating that these large ceratopsians may have been on the giant theropod's menu.

However, they couldn't charge head-on at full speed like modern rhinos, as the snouts of their skulls were too lightly built to survive the impact.

A mummified Triceratops, nicknamed "Lane", was discovered in 2012:

blog.hmns.org/2012/05/introduc…

www.omniology.com/dino-skin/3.…

This specimen's skin was mostly covered in a mosaic of polygonal scales, but with an almost crocodile-like texture on the underside of the body, and bizarre, knoblike protrusions near the rear of the body. These knobs have been speculated by some to be the attachment points for long quills.

As for the colouration I gave this particular dinosaur, I mainly drew inspiration from the Triceratops on Doctor Who's "Dinosaurs on a Spaceship", and from the fan-made Triceratops on "Project Crynosaurs".

Feel free to download any of my Spore PNGs!

Description
One of the most famous dinosaurs of all time, Triceratops lived in North America during the Late Cretaceous. It was one of the last new dinosaur genera to evolve before the extinction event that wiped out the dinosaurs. They were mostly or completely herbivorous, and fed mainly on palms, cycads and ferns.

When fully grown, Triceratops measured around 8-9 metres in length and weighed an estimated 6-12 tons.

As with all ceratopsian dinosaurs, the purpose of the horns and frill is something of a mystery. Triceratops in particular is unusual in that its frill does not have a pair of openings on it. Palaeontologist Jack Horner has suggested that the frill may have been covered in keratin, perhaps brightly coloured. In which case it would probably have been used for display.

It's possible that they may have used their long brow horns for defence, and in territorial battles (the frills of some individuals show signs of having scraped against the horns of other Triceratops). A Triceratops horn was found with a healed bite mark from a Tyrannosaurus rex, indicating that these large ceratopsians may have been on the giant theropod's menu.

However, they couldn't charge head-on at full speed like modern rhinos, as the snouts of their skulls were too lightly built to survive the impact.

A mummified Triceratops, nicknamed "Lane", was discovered in 2012:

blog.hmns.org/2012/05/introduc…

www.omniology.com/dino-skin/3.…

This specimen's skin was mostly covered in a mosaic of polygonal scales, but with an almost crocodile-like texture on the underside of the body, and bizarre, knoblike protrusions near the rear of the body. These knobs have been speculated by some to be the attachment points for long quills.

As for the colouration I gave this particular dinosaur, I mainly drew inspiration from the Triceratops on Doctor Who's "Dinosaurs on a Spaceship", and from the fan-made Triceratops on "Project Crynosaurs".

Feel free to download any of my Spore PNGs!