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Topic Pages contain an overview, definitions, biographies, related topics, images, plus links to relevant articles and other content provided by your library. Topic Page: Triceratops

Definition: triceratops from The Chambers Dictionary

an ornithischian, quadrupedal, herbivorous dinosaur of the Cretaceous period, having a horn over each eye and one on its nose. [tri- and Gr keras, keratos horn, and ōps face]

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Image from: Triceratops horridus, Cretaceous period (colour litho) in Bridgeman Images: DeAgostini Library
Summary Article: Triceratops
from The Columbia Encyclopedia

(trīsĕr'Әtŏps) [Gr., = three-horn face], genus of ornithischian quadruped dinosaurs of the late Cretaceous period. Because of some variations in sample fossils, it was thought at one time that there were as many as 16 different species, but only one species, Triceratops horridus is currently recognized. It is characterized by its three horns, one on the nose and one over each eye, and a large bony frill projecting backward from the skull, which probably served to protect the neck and fore part of the body. The head was large (about 8 ft/2.4 m long), the body (about 20 ft/6 m long) was bulky and barrel shaped, and the limbs were massive and of equal length. Fossil specimens have been found in the W United States and Canada. It belongs to the group of horned dinosaurs, the ceratopsians.

"Triceratops." In The Columbia Encyclopedia, by Paul Lagasse, and Columbia University. 8th ed. Columbia University Press, 2018. https://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/triceratops
Triceratops. (2018). In P. Lagasse & Columbia University, The Columbia encyclopedia. (8th ed.). [Online]. New York: Columbia University Press. Available from: https://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/triceratops [Accessed 18 September 2018].
"Triceratops." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Paul Lagasse, and Columbia University, Columbia University Press, 8th edition, 2018. Credo Reference, https://search.credoreference.com/content/topic/triceratops. Accessed 18 Sep. 2018.
The Columbia Encyclopedia, © Columbia University Press 2018

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pronunciation (1892) : any of a genus (Triceratops) of large herbivorous quadrupedal ceratopsian dinosaurs of the Late Cretaceous with three horns,

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