The large Chasmosaurus was from Ceratopsia, the family of horns. This dino had frills the same size or bigger than its head. Its beak was like the one of a parrot, and it used it to defend itself since it wasn’t a predator.
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Some Quick Facts about the Chasmosaurus
| Name | Chasmosaurus (meaning “opening lizard”) |
| Type of dinosaur | Ornithischia |
| Territory | Wet forests with occasional floods and cold winters. Marshes and swamps near the beach, Canada |
| Size | Average size, 14–16 feet long, 5 feet tall |
| Color | Probably brownish |
| Interesting Characteristics | Long frill, horns, short tail, beak |
| Diet | Herbivorous (low-lying vegetation) |
| Major Threats | Asteroid |
The Chasmosaurus (not to be mistaken for Camarasaurus) was a ceratopsian dinosaur, meaning it came from a family of horned dinosaurs. It also had a big frill for identification and protection. Despite being quite large, it didn’t use its size to kill other dinos since it was herbivorous.
How Big was a Chasmosaurus?
Imagine a dino the size of a pickup truck! It had a large belly and a short but thick tail. Still, Chasmosaurs was average, being 14–16 feet long and 5 feet tall.
Its V-shaped neck frill was almost the same size or larger than its head. But the actual bone had two big holes. This frill was a characteristic of the Ceratopsidae group. It probably was used as a display to ward off predators and signal to other Chasmosaurs who their family members were.
What was the largest Chasmosaurus ever found?
There were different species of Chasmosaurus around during this time. The biggest one was 16 ft long (Chasmosaurus belli). On the other hand, the smallest was 14 ft long (C. russelli).
What did the Chasmosaurus eat?
This dino ate plants. It used its tough beak-like mouth to grab the plant and then chewed it on the side of its mouth. It’s interesting to note that other dinos could hardly eat like this.
Could a Chasmosaurus Live with a T. rex?
Paleontologists don’t know the truth, but they probably didn’t live together. The Chasmosaurus lived during the Late Campanian Age of the Upper Cretaceous Period. They were found in the Dinosaur Park Formation in Alberta, western Canada.
The Tyrannosaurus lived later, during the Lastest Maastritchian of the Late Cretaceous. Both lived in North America, but the T. rex has been found in the U.S. in Montana and South Dakota, and also in Canada in Saskatchewan.
A Chasmosaurus habitat was very wet and cold in the middle of the forest. It was so wet that sometimes there were floods. The habitat of the T. rex was warmer, but also wet. So there was only a small possibility of them living together since they lived on the same continent and at very close times.
Is the Triceratops a Chasmosaurus?
The Triceratops and the Chasmosaurus are not the same dinosaurs, even though they looked alike, with their big frills. They were from the same family and subfamily of Dinosauria, Ceratopsidae and Chasmosaurinae. They also lived in North America and at very close times.
The Triceratops was way larger. Both had one nasal horn and two horns above the eyes. The brow horns of the Chasmosaurus were short, and the Triceratops’ was long. They were relatives and didn’t live far from each other. But they were completely different species.