The Torosaurus is the less-famous cousin of the Triceratops. It had a giant skull over 9 feet long with large neck frills and horns to protect itself from predators. It lived almost 65 million years ago during the late Cretaceous period and was one of the last dinos to live before the catastrophic event.
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Some Quick Facts about the Torosaurus

Name | Torosaurus (perforated lizard) |
Type of dinosaur | Ceratopsian / Ceratopsidae |
Territory | Forests and grasslands, North America |
Size | 25-27 feet long, 7-10 feet tall |
Color | Likely brownish |
Interesting Characteristics | The largest skull of any land animal |
Diet | Plants |
Major Threats | Large theropods, natural disasters |
What Did the Torosaurus Look Like?
The Torosaurus has much in common with the Triceratops, but a few features make it stand apart. What makes the Torosaurus stand out in the crowd is its massive skull.
Of all creatures to walk planet Earth, the Torosaurus has the biggest skull of them all! Its skull measured almost 9 feet long, about the same size as a large Christmas tree.
Did the Torosaurus have a horn?
The Torosaurus had large horns on its nose and above its eyes.
It also had large frills to protect its neck that were much larger than the frills of a Triceratops. If a T-Rex tried to bite into its neck, it would have a hard time penetrating the armor-like plating of its neck frill. In addition to its neck frill, it used its large horns to protect itself.
What did the Torosaurus eat?
This Ceratopsid dinosaur had a mouth built for munching on plants. Its long beak was perfect for snapping branched off a tree, and it used its flat teeth for grinding plants into a paste.
Where Did the Torosaurus Live?

This horned dinosaur was a North American dinosaur that lived in lush environments with plenty of vegetation to feed.
Since the Torosaurus was an herbivore, it lived in places with plenty of forests and plant life to feed. Fossils of the Torosaurus have been discovered in places like:
- Colorado
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Utah
- Texas
- Saskatchewan
- Wyoming
Many of the best-preserved fossils come from the Hell Creek Formation, which spans four states in the USA. It’s home to many Cretaceous dinosaurs like the Torosaurus but also includes other Cretaceous dinos like the Arrhinoceratops, Pachycephalosaurus, Pentaceratops, Triceratops, and Tyrannosaurus.
Are the Triceratops and the Torosaurus dinos Related?
The Triceratops and the Torosaurus are related. They are so closely related that some paleontologists believe they are the same dino!
Since the discovery of the Triceratops and the Torosaurus, paleontology agreed they were two Ceratopsian dinosaur species.
A 2009 study by Scannella and Horner in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology claimed that the Torosaurus and Triceratops were the same dinosaurs. In the study, they felt that the Torosaurus specimens were those of the adult Triceratops.
As the Triceratops grew to an adult, the shape of its horns transformed. The study created quite a stir in the paleontology community, and the topic is still debated today.
When was the Torosaurus Discovered?
Just two years after the discovery of the Triceratops, a fossil collector named John Bell Hatcher, an employee of famous paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh, discovered the Torosaurus.
The first fossil record of this Maastrichtian-age dino was a partial skull that they used to determine that it was a separate species from the Triceratops.
These original Torosaurus specimens came from the Lance Formation in Wyoming. In later years, more fossils of this Cretaceous dinosaur appeared in other parts of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Who Was the Torosaurus Afraid Of?
As an herbivore, the Torosaurus had predators, but not many. During the Cretaceous age, dinosaurs grew a lot, but there were still smaller dinosaurs that served as a tasty snack to apex predators like the T. Rex.
Like the Triceratops, paleontologists have determined that large herbivores like the Torosaurus and the Triceratops were among the most plentiful dinosaurs of the Cretaceous age, and for a good reason.
The Torosaurus didn’t have to deal with as many predators as their smaller herbivore cousins. These dinos had built-in armor with large neck frills, hard skin, and horns. They weren’t fast, but they were built like a tank.
They were also well-equipped to protect themselves! The only dinosaur in the Cretaceous period that would have the Torosaurus shaking in their hoofs were large apex predators like the T-Rex or the Torvosaurus.