Torosaurus (meaning "perforated lizard") was a ceratopsid dinosaur genus. It had one of the largest skulls of any land animal known, reaching 8.5 feet (2.6 meters) in length. Recently, a large (~10 ft.) Pentaceratops skull was thought to have surpassed the skull of Torosaurus in length. However, the frill of this Pentaceratops specimen is largely incomplete and highly reconstructed, thereby making any certain length measurements sketchy at best.^{[citation needed]} From head to tail, Torosaurus probably measured about 25 feet (7.6 meters) long and weighed an estimated 4.4 to 6.6 tons (4 to 6 tonnes). Geography of the US in the Late Cretaceous Period Late Cretaceous (100mya - 65mya) refers to the second half of the Cretaceous Period, named after the famous white chalk cliffs of southern England, which date from this time. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 514 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (969 × 1129 pixel, file size: 269 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) A statue of a Torosaurus in front of the Peabody Museum at Yale University File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this... The Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale University was founded by the philanthropist George Peabody in 1866 at the behest of his nephew Othniel Charles Marsh, the early paleontologist. ... For other uses, see Scientific classification (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ... Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ... Clades Subclass Anapsida Subclass Diapsida Infraclass Lepidosauromorpha Infraclass Archosauromorpha Sauropsids are a diverse group of mostly egg-laying vertebrate animals. ... Orders & Suborders Saurischia Sauropodomorpha Theropoda Ornithischia Thyreophora Ornithopoda Marginocephalia Dinosaurs were vertebrate animals that dominated the terrestrial ecosystem for over 160 million years, first appearing approximately 230 million years ago. ... Suborders Thyreophora Cerapoda    Ornithopoda    Marginocephalia Ornithischia is an order of beaked, herbivorous dinosaurs. ... Suborders Ornithopoda Marginocephalia Pachycephalosauria] Ceratopsia Triceratops skeleton at the National Museum of Natural History The Cerapoda are a clade of the order Ornithischia. ... The Ceratopsia are a group of omnivorous and herbivorous, beaked dinosaurs which thrived in North America and Asia during the Cretaceous. ... Genera Centrosaurinae    Achelousaurus    Centrosaurus    Einiosaurus    Styracosaurus    Pachyrhinosaurus Ceratopsinae    Chasmosaurus    Diceratops    Pentaceratops    Protoceratops    Torosaurus    Triceratops Ceratopsids, or members of the Ceratopsidae (or Ceratopidae), are a diverse group of marginocephalian dinosaurs like Triceratops and Styracosaurus. ... Genera See text. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Othniel Charles Marsh (1831-1899) Othniel Charles Marsh (October 29, 1831 - March 18, 1899) was one of the pre-eminent paleontologists of the 19th century, who discovered and named many fossils found in the American West. ... Genera Centrosaurinae    Achelousaurus    Centrosaurus    Einiosaurus    Styracosaurus    Pachyrhinosaurus Ceratopsinae    Chasmosaurus    Diceratops    Pentaceratops    Protoceratops    Torosaurus    Triceratops Ceratopsids, or members of the Ceratopsidae (or Ceratopidae), are a diverse group of marginocephalian dinosaurs like Triceratops and Styracosaurus. ... Orders & Suborders Saurischia Sauropodomorpha Theropoda Ornithischia Thyreophora Ornithopoda Marginocephalia Dinosaurs were vertebrate animals that dominated the terrestrial ecosystem for over 160 million years, first appearing approximately 230 million years ago. ... For other uses, see Genus (disambiguation). ... Species Pentaceratops (meaning five-horned face and derived from Classical Greek penta/πεντα =five, cerat-/κερατ- =horn, -ops/ωψ = face) is a ceratopsid herbivorous dinosaur genus from the Late Cretaceous period of North America, living around 77-69 million years ago. ... Species Pentaceratops (meaning five-horned face and derived from Classical Greek penta/πεντα =five, cerat-/κερατ- =horn, -ops/ωψ = face) is a ceratopsid herbivorous dinosaur genus from the Late Cretaceous period of North America, living around 77-69 million years ago. ... A foot (plural: feet or foot;[1] symbol or abbreviation: ft or, sometimes, ′ – a prime) is a unit of length, in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... The metre, or meter (symbol: m) is the SI base unit of length. ... The short ton is a unit of mass equal to 907. ... A tonne or metric ton (symbol t), sometimes referred to as a metric tonne, is a measurement of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms. ...

Discoveries and species

Two Torosaurus skulls were discovered in southeastern Wyoming by John Bell Hatcher in 1891 and the species was subsequently named by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1891, two years after Triceratops. Official language(s) English Capital Cheyenne Largest city Cheyenne Area  Ranked 10th  - Total 97,818 sq mi (253,348 km²)  - Width 280 miles (450 km)  - Length 360 miles (580 km)  - % water 0. ... John Bell Hatcher (October 11, 1861 – July 3, 1904) was an American paleontologist most famous for discovering the triceratops. ... Year 1891 (MDCCCXCI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Othniel Charles Marsh (1831-1899) Othniel Charles Marsh (October 29, 1831 - March 18, 1899) was one of the pre-eminent paleontologists of the 19th century, who discovered and named many fossils found in the American West. ... Year 1891 (MDCCCXCI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Species (type) Marsh, 1890 Triceratops (IPA: ) was a herbivorous genus of ceratopsid dinosaur that lived during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period, around 68 to 65 million years ago (mya) in what is now North America. ...

Remains have since been found in Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, North Dakota, Utah and Saskatchewan. Some fragmentary remains, which may be Torosaurus, have been found in the Big Bend Region of Texas and in the San Juan Basin of New Mexico. Fossil evidence suggests it may have been uncommon; remains of its relative Triceratops are more frequently found. Official language(s) English Capital Cheyenne Largest city Cheyenne Area  Ranked 10th  - Total 97,818 sq mi (253,348 km²)  - Width 280 miles (450 km)  - Length 360 miles (580 km)  - % water 0. ... Official language(s) English Capital Helena Largest city Billings Area  Ranked 4th  - Total 147,165 sq mi (381,156 km²)  - Width 255 miles (410 km)  - Length 630 miles (1,015 km)  - % water 1  - Latitude 44°26N to 49°N  - Longitude 104°2W to 116°2W Population  Ranked... Official language(s) English Capital Pierre Largest city Sioux Falls Area  Ranked 17th  - Total 77,116[1] sq mi (199,905 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 380 miles (610 km)  - % water 1. ... Official language(s) English Capital Bismarck Largest city Fargo Area  Ranked 19th  - Total 70,762 sq mi (183,272 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 340 miles (545 km)  - % water 2. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... Motto: Multis E Gentibus Vires (Latin: The Strength of Many Peoples) Capital Regina Largest city Saskatoon Official languages English Government - Lieutenant-Governor Gordon Barnhart - Premier Lorne Calvert (NDP) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 14 - Senate seats 6 Confederation September 1, 1905 (Split from NWT) (9th (province)) Area  Ranked... Casa Grande is a prominent peak in the Chisos Mountains of the Big Bend area of west Texas. ... Official language(s) No official language See languages of Texas Capital Austin Largest city Houston Largest metro area Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington Area  Ranked 2nd  - Total 261,797 sq mi (678,051 km²)  - Width 773 miles (1,244 km)  - Length 790 miles (1,270 km)  - % water 2. ... Capital Santa Fe Largest city Albuquerque Area  Ranked 5th  - Total 121,665 sq mi (315,194 km²)  - Width 342 miles (550 km)  - Length 370 miles (595 km)  - % water 0. ...

Torosaurus species:

• T. latus Marsh, 1891 (type species)

Misassignments: A type species fixes the name of a genus (or of a taxon in a rank lower than genus). ...

• T. gladius Marsh, 1891 (=T. latus)
• T. utahensis Lawson, 1976 (=T. latus)

(NB: The last species was originally described as Arrhinoceratops utahensis by Gilmore in 1946. Review by Sullivan et al. in 2005^[1] has left it as Torosaurus utahensis and somewhat older than T. latus. Arrhinoceratops was a ceratopsian from Late Cretaceous Canada. ...

Although the name Torosaurus is frequently translated as 'bull lizard' (from the Latin 'taurus' (bull), it probably means 'perforated lizard' (from the Greek word 'toreo' (pierce, perforate).^[2] The name refers to the holes, or fenestrae, in the frill of this animal. This was probably intended by Othniel Charles Marsh (the original namer) to contrast with the condition in Triceratops, which had a solid frill. Much of this confusion results from the fact that Marsh never explicitly gave the etymology of the name in his papers. For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... Othniel Charles Marsh (1831-1899) Othniel Charles Marsh (October 29, 1831 - March 18, 1899) was one of the pre-eminent paleontologists of the 19th century, who discovered and named many fossils found in the American West. ... Species (type) Marsh, 1890 Triceratops (IPA: ) was a herbivorous genus of ceratopsid dinosaur that lived during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period, around 68 to 65 million years ago (mya) in what is now North America. ...

Classification

Torosaurus belonged to the subfamily known as Chasmosaurinae, within the family Ceratopsidae, within the Ceratopsia (which name is Ancient Greek for "horned face"), a group of herbivorous dinosaurs with parrot-like beaks which thrived in North America and Asia during the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. Recent studies indicate that Torosaurus is most closely related to Triceratops.^[3] Jack Horner has suggested in public lectures that Torosaurus may in fact represent the adult version of one sex of Triceratops, pointing out that there are no juvenile specimens of Torosaurus and that approximately 50% of all subadult Triceratops skulls have two thin areas in the frill that correspond with the placement of "holes" in Torosaurus skulls. The theory is that all Tricertops had solid frills up to adulthood, but on reaching sexual maturity, one sex or the other would have developed longer frills as a form of display. To counterbalance the extra weight of the elongated frill, holes would have necessarily developed in the bone. While this theory does explain the absence of any Torosaurus specimens younger than adults and also explains the even split between uniformly thick frills and frills with thin patches in subadult Triceratops specimens, the theory is not widely accepted in the scientific community and has apparently not been put forward by Dr. Horner outside of informal lectures. Genera Centrosaurinae    Achelousaurus    Centrosaurus    Einiosaurus    Styracosaurus    Pachyrhinosaurus Ceratopsinae    Chasmosaurus    Diceratops    Pentaceratops    Protoceratops    Torosaurus    Triceratops Ceratopsids, or members of the Ceratopsidae (or Ceratopidae), are a diverse group of marginocephalian dinosaurs like Triceratops and Styracosaurus. ... The Ceratopsia are a group of omnivorous and herbivorous, beaked dinosaurs which thrived in North America and Asia during the Cretaceous. ... Systematics (but see below) Family Cacatuidae (cockatoos) Subfamily Microglossinae (Palm Cockatoo) Subfamily Calyptorhynchinae (dark cockatoos) Subfamily Cacatuinae (white cockatoos) Family Psittacidae (true parrots) Subfamily Loriinae (lories and lorikeets) Subfamily Psittacinae (typical parrots and allies) Tribe Arini (American psittacines) Tribe Cyclopsitticini (fig parrots) Tribe Micropsittini (pygmy parrots) Tribe Nestorini (kakas and... North America North America is a continent[1] in the Earths northern hemisphere and (chiefly) western hemisphere. ... For other uses, see Asia (disambiguation). ... The Jurassic Period is a major unit of the geologic timescale that extends from about 199. ... // The Cretaceous Period is one of the major divisions of the geologic timescale, reaching from the end of the Jurassic Period (i. ... Species (type) Marsh, 1890 Triceratops (IPA: ) was a herbivorous genus of ceratopsid dinosaur that lived during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period, around 68 to 65 million years ago (mya) in what is now North America. ... John Jack R. Horner (born June 15, 1946) is an American paleontologist who discovered and named the Maiasaura, providing the first clear evidence that dinosaurs cared for their young. ...

Paleobiology

Torosaurus, like all ceratopsians, was an herbivore. During the Cretaceous, flowering plants were "geographically limited on the landscape", so it is likely that this dinosaur fed on the predominant plants of the era: ferns, cycads and conifers. It would have used its sharp beak to bite off the leaves or needles. A deer and two fawns feeding on some foliage A herbivore is often defined as any organism that eats only plants[1]. By that definition, many fungi, some bacteria, many animals, about 1% of flowering plants and some protists can be considered herbivores. ... Classes Psilotopsida Equisetopsida Marattiopsida Pteridopsida (Polypodiopsida) this dnt make sense A fern is any one of a group of about 20,000 species of plants classified in the phylum or division Pteridophyta, also known as Filicophyta. ... Families Cycadaceae cycas family Stangeriaceae stangeria family Zamiaceae zamia family Leaves and male cone of Cycas revoluta Cycads are an ancient group of seed plants characterized by a large crown of compound leaves and a stout trunk. ... Orders & Families Cordaitales † Pinales   Pinaceae - Pine family   Araucariaceae - Araucaria family   Podocarpaceae - Yellow-wood family   Sciadopityaceae - Umbrella-pine family   Cupressaceae - Cypress family   Cephalotaxaceae - Plum-yew family   Taxaceae - Yew family Vojnovskyales † Voltziales † The conifers, division Pinophyta, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. ...

In popular culture

• Torosaurus was featured in the BBC and Discovery Channel special, Walking with Dinosaurs.
• It was also featured in the Vivendi Universal game, Jurassic Park: Operation Genesis.
• "Torosaurus" is a nickname for Ray Toro, the guitarist in the band My Chemical Romance.

For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... Discovery Channel is a cable and satellite TV channel founded by John Hendricks which is distributed by Discovery Communications. ... The factual accuracy of part of this article is disputed. ... Vivendi Universal (VU) is a French conglomerate active in media and communications with activities in music, television and film, publishing, telecommunications and the Internet. ... Jurassic Park: Operation Genesis is a video game for the PC, Xbox, and Playstation 2 based on the novel and film series Jurassic Park. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... My Chemical Romance are an American rock band formed in 2001. ...

References

1. ^ Sullivan, R. M., A. C. Boere, and S. G. Lucas. 2005. Redescription of the ceratopsid dinosaur Torosaurus utahensis (Gilmore, 1946) and a revision of the genus. Journal of Paleontology 79:564-582.
2. ^ Dodson, P. (1996). The Horned Dinosaurs. Princeton University Press, Pinceton, New Jersey, pp. xiv-346
3. ^ Farke, A. A. 2006. Cranial osteology and phylogenetic relationships of the chasmosaurine ceratopsid Torosaurus latus; pp. 235-257 in K. Carpenter (ed.), Horns and Beaks: Ceratopsian and Ornithopod Dinosaurs. Indiana University Press, Bloomington.

• Dodson, P. (1996). The Horned Dinosaurs. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, pp. xiv-346

External links

• http://www.dinosaurvalley.com/Visiting_Drumheller/Kids_Zone/Groups_of_Dinosaurs/index.php
• http://www.dinosaurier-web.de/galery/pages_t/torosaurus.html

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