| Utahceratops | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Reconstructed skeleton,Natural History Museum of Utah | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | †Ornithischia |
| Clade: | †Ceratopsia |
| Family: | †Ceratopsidae |
| Subfamily: | †Chasmosaurinae |
| Genus: | †Utahceratops Sampsonet al.,2010 |
| Species: | †U. gettyi |
| Binomial name | |
| †Utahceratops gettyi Sampsonet al., 2010 | |
Utahceratops is anextinctgenus ofceratopsiandinosaur that lived approximately 76.4~75.5million years ago during theLate Cretaceousperiod in what is nowUtah.Utahceratops was a large-sized, robustly-built, ground-dwelling,quadrupedalherbivore, that could grow up to an estimated 4.5–5 m (15–16 ft) long.
The genus nameUtahceratops, means "horned face from Utah", and is derived from the state of Utah andGreek words "keras" (κέρας) meaning "horn" and "ops" (ὤψ) referring to the "face".[1] Thespecific namegettyi, is derived from the name of Mike Getty, who discovered the holotype and has played a pivotal role in the recovery of fossils from theGrand Staircase–Escalante National Monument (GSENM). It was first named byScott D. Sampson, Mark A. Loewen, Andrew A. Farke, Eric M. Roberts,Catherine A. Forster, Joshua A. Smith and Alan L. Titus in2010, and the type species isUtahceratops gettyi.[2]
The holotype specimen UMNH VP 16784, consists of only a partial skull. This genus is known from six specimens, including two partial skulls, which when taken together preserve about 96% of the skull and 70% of the postcranial skeleton.Utahceratops are estimated to have measured 4.5–5 metres (14.8–16.4 ft) in length and 2 tonnes (2.2 tons) in weight.[3][4]
According to Sampson et al. (2010),Utahceratops can be distinguished based on the following characteristics: the nasal horncore is caudally positioned, almost entirely behind external naris; the supraorbital horncores are short, robust, dorsolaterally directed, and oblate in shape with a blunt tip; the episquamosals on the mid-portion of the lateral frill margin are low and extremely elongate (some >10 cm long); and the median portion of transverse bar of theparietal bone is rostrally curved.[2]
Utahceratops has been classified as a basalchasmosaurineceratopsian. It has been found to be in a clade of basal chasmosaurines withPentaceratops.[2]
The below cladogram follows Longrich (2014), who named a new species ofPentaceratops, and included nearly all chasmosaurine species.[5]
| Chasmosaurinae |
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The only known specimen ofUtahceratops was recovered at theKaiparowits Formation, in Utah.[2]Argon-argon radiometric dating indicates that the Kaiparowits Formation was deposited between 76.6 and 74.5 million years ago, during the Campanian stage of the LateCretaceous period.[6][7] During the Late Cretaceous period, the site of the Kaiparowits Formation was located near the western shore of theWestern Interior Seaway, a large inland sea that split North America into two landmasses,Laramidia to the west andAppalachia to the east. The plateau where dinosaurs lived was an ancient floodplain dominated by large channels and abundant wetlandpeat swamps, ponds and lakes, and was bordered by highlands. The climate was wet and humid, and supported an abundant and diverse range of organisms.[8] This formation contains one of the best and most continuous records of Late Cretaceous terrestrial life in the world.[9]
Utahceratops shared itspaleoenvironment with other dinosaurs, such asdromaeosauridtheropods, thetroodontidTalos sampsoni,tyrannosaurids likeTeratophoneus,armored ankylosaurids, theduckbilled hadrosaursParasaurolophus cyrtocristatus andGryposaurus monumentensis, theceratopsiansNasutoceratops titusi andKosmoceratops richardsoni and theoviraptorosaurianHagryphus giganteus.[10] Some fossil evidence suggests the presence of thetyrannosauridAlbertosaurus and theornithomimidOrnithomimus velox, but the existing assessment of the material is not conclusive. Paleofauna present in the Kaiparowits Formation includedchondrichthyans (sharks and rays),frogs,salamanders,turtles,lizards andcrocodilians. A variety of earlymammals were present includingmultituberculates,marsupials, andinsectivorans.[11]
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