8 Triceratops Facts For Kids

Triceratops are long ago extinct but they are still a great source of wonder for most people. Questions that will likely never be answered like; Where did they go? What happened to them? Are pressing questions that scientist have been trying to answer since they were discovered.

1. The Triceratops get their name from combing words the word “Tri” meaning three and “Keratops” meaning horned face. The name suits this dinosaur completely because it did have three horns on the top of its face!

2. This dinosaur lived over 65 million years ago according to carbon dating processes. It was estimated to be about 10 feet tall, 26 feet long and weigh between 8 and 12 tons. The head alone could easily reach 7 feet in length.

3. This giant dinosaur used its horns to defend itself against the cannibalistic T Rex. This gentle giant was a herbivore that ate only plant matter.

4. The first evidence of the Triceratops was found in 1887 in Denver Colorado. It was a partial skull plate with the three horns still in tact. It had over 700 teeth that it rarely used!

5. It had a long heavy tail to balance out its big huge head. One of the skulls that were found had a 3 foot long horn attached and it weighed 3 tons alone! That is over 6,000 pounds just for the head!

6. Since there is bone evidence that was found in North America we know for sure that they walked around the US for at least some time but there is no hard evidence that suggests where else they lived. As bits and pieces are found though out the world scientists are more able to get an idea of where they lived and how they traveled (their migration patterns).

7. Bone evidence have been uncovered in Canada and the US only at this point.

8. Like most dinosaurs the Triceratops was not a fast moving animal because of its size. It was a herbivore so some scientists theorize that the 800 or more teeth were mostly for show!