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State Fossils
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Wyoming Symbols
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Wyoming State Dinosaur
Horned Dinosaur
(Triceratops)
Adopted on March 18, 1994.
The Horned Dinosaur, Triceratops, was named the state's official dinosaur in June 1994 following legislation providing for a contest and election by Wyoming elementary school children. It was chosen over three other candidates.
One of the most common dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous Period, the Triceratops is known for the three prominent horns on its head.
Roamed throughout Wyoming and North America about 75 million years ago. Named for its three large facial horns (Triceratops means literally "three-horned face"), Triceratops was a plant-eating dinosaur that may have traveled in herds, feeding on the lush vegetation that existed at the time. The animal may have attained a weight of 6 tons and a length of about 30 feet.
"Fossil evidence supports the idea that this head armor was used in display and ritualized combat within its own species," says Brent Breithaupt, UW Geological Museum director. "It may also have served to deter predators."
One of the predators a Triceratops defended itself against was the fearsome Tyrannosaurus rex.
O. C. March discovered the triceratops in 1887 in Wyoming. Marsh originally found a triceratops horn, which he thought was a bison horn. In 1888, Marsh found the complete skull of the triceratops and realized that it was definitely not a giant bison! Marsh named the triceratops in 1889.
LIVED: 67-65 mya during the Cretaceous period in North America
SIZE: Length 9 m (30 ft)
WEIGHT: 4.8 tonnes (5 1/2 tons) heavy as an elephant
DIET: Fibrous plants
DEFENSE: Triceratops would charge at predators, like a modern day Rhinoceros. The three horns on its head would easily pierce a predator's hide, and the predator would find it isn't worth it.
AMAZING: Triceratops' frill probably served as a heat exchange, shedding extra heat when it was in the shade, and warming up in the sun. When a pair of Triceratopsians fought, they would lock horns, and twist until the stronger one would push the other to the ground.
Taxonomic Hierarchy
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| Kingdom |
Animalia -- animals |
| Phylum |
Chordata -- chordates |
| Subphylum |
Vertebrata -- vertebrates |
| Class |
Archosauria (diapsids with socket-set teeth, etc.) |
| Order |
Ornithischia - bird-hipped dinosaurs (plant-eaters) |
| Infraorder |
Ceratopsia (also called Ceratopia) |
| Family |
Ceratopsidae |
| Genus |
Triceratops |
| Species |
T. horridus (type species: Marsh, 1889) |
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State Fossils
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Most US states have made a state fossil designation, in many
cases during the 1980s. It is common to designate one species in which fossilization has
occurred, rather than a single specimen, or a category of fossils not limited to a single
species.
Some states that lack a "state fossil" have nevertheless singled out a fossil for formal
designation such as a state dinosaur, rock, gem or stone.
fossil (fŏs'əl)
n.
1. A remnant or trace of an organism of a past geologic age, such as a skeleton or
leaf imprint, embedded and preserved in the earth's crust.
2. One, such as a rigid theory, that is outdated or antiquated.
adj.
1. Characteristic of or having the nature of a fossil.
2. Being or similar to a fossil.
3. Belonging to the past; antiquated.
[From Latin fossilis, dug up, from fossus, past participle of fodere, to dig.]
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