Wendiceratops
"Wendy's horned face"
Type species Wendiceratops pinhornensis
- Lived
- 84 to 72 million years ago, Late Cretaceous
- Diet
- Herbivore
- Length
- about 6 m (20 ft)
- Group
- Ceratopsians, Ceratopsidae
- Found in
- Canada
- Named by
- Evans and Ryan 2015
Size comparison
To scale
Scale in metersOutline: typical ceratopsian shape
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
80 million years ago
Habitat
Rivers crossed the low plains of the Oldman Formation, leaving muddy deposits beyond their banks. Other dinosaurs from these rocks include Daspletosaurus, Gorgosaurus and Struthiomimus.
Field notes
About Wendiceratops
What it was like
Wendiceratops was a horned plant eater about 6 meters (20 feet) long. It had a large horn on its nose and a frill edged with hooks that curled forward. It belonged to the centrosaurines, the group that includes Centrosaurus and Styracosaurus.
Its world
It lived in the Late Cretaceous in what is now Alberta, Canada. Its bones come from the Oldman Formation, where it shared the land with tyrannosaurs such as Daspletosaurus.
How it was found
Evans and Ryan named it in 2015. The type species is Wendiceratops pinhornensis. The name honors the fossil hunter who found the bonebed.
Field gallery
More views of Wendiceratops
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
1 of 3
Lived alongside
Found in the same rock formations
A rock formation can hold fossils laid down millions of years apart, so not every animal here met Wendiceratops.
The evidence
The science behind Wendiceratops
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- Many separate bones from a bonebed represent the skull, backbone, shoulders, pelvis and limbs.
- Broad, thick hooks along the frill curl forward over its upper surface.
- An incomplete nasal bone supports a prominent upright horn close to the eyes.
Borrowed from relatives
- Centrosaurus guides the restoration of missing jaw sections and gaps in the body skeleton.
- Triceratops provides a comparison for the weight-bearing hands, with sturdy inner fingers and smaller outer fingers.
Still unknown
- The complete outline and height of the nose horn.
- The shape of any horns above its eyes.
- Its skin color and pattern.
Often drawn wrong
- Its frill hooks curved forward over the frill, rather than spreading outward as long spikes.
Discovery timeline
- 2009PostureFujiwara
- 2015Named itEvans & Ryan
- 2022Full descriptionScott, Ryan & Evans
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Wendiceratops
Posture
Rebuilt the hand of Triceratops with the fingers angled outward, providing a comparison for the missing hand details of Wendiceratops.
A reevaluation of the manus structure inTriceratops(Ceratopsia: Ceratopsidae). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 29: 1136-1147
Read the paper : A reevaluation of the manus structure inTriceratops(Ceratopsia: Ceratopsidae) (opens in a new tab)Named it
Named a horned dinosaur with broad frill hooks that curl forward and an upright nose horn.
Cranial Anatomy of Wendiceratops pinhornensis gen. et sp. nov., a Centrosaurine Ceratopsid (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) from the Oldman Formation (Campanian), Alberta, Canada, and the Evolution of Ceratopsid Nasal Ornamentation. PLOS ONE 10: e0130007
Read the paper : Cranial Anatomy of Wendiceratops pinhornensis gen. et sp. nov., a Centrosaurine Ceratopsid (Dinosauria: Ornithischia) from the Oldman Formation (Campanian), Alberta, Canada, and the Evolution of Ceratopsid Nasal Ornamentation (opens in a new tab)Full description
Described the body skeleton and a bonebed containing several age groups, interpreted as evidence that Wendiceratops lived in herds.
Postcranial description of Wendiceratops pinhornensis and a taphonomic analysis of the oldest monodominant ceratopsid bonebed. The Anatomical Record 306: 1824-1841
Read the paper : Postcranial description of Wendiceratops pinhornensis and a taphonomic analysis of the oldest monodominant ceratopsid bonebed (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Ceratopsidae
Sources: Wikidata