SciencemachairoceratopsdinosaurUtah

New Horned Dinosaur Species Unearthed In Utah

The two-ton plant-eater Machairoceratops cronusi had four horns and lived 77 million years ago.
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Writer, Editor, HuffPost

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Mark Witton

A new species of horned dinosaur has been unearthed by scientists in southern Utah.

Remains of the animal, named Machairoceratops cronusi, suggest it was about 26 feet long, weighed two tons and ate plants. The first traces were found a decade ago in an area rich with the remains of centrosaurines -- large-bodied, plant-eating dinosaurs that roamed North America and Asia 77 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period.

The illustration above is an artist's reconstruction of Machairoceratops. It shows the dinosaur's neck shield with ominous-looking appendages anchored to the animal's skull.

According to a scientific paper about the discovery in the PLOS ONE journal, "the specimen consists of two curved and elongate orbital horncores, ... [and] a nearly complete, slightly deformed braincase." 

The image below shows pieces of the Machairoceratops that have been recovered. 

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Lund et al, 2016 PLOS ONE

The new species was discovered by an international team of scientists conducting paleontological and geological surveys in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument of southern Utah. 

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Patrick OâConnor, Ohio University

It can take years for this kind of discovery to find its way to the public. 

"The first parts of the specimen were discovered on the surface in 2006, but the full excavation was completed over two additional field seasons (in 2007 and 2009). Then, the process of doing the careful laboratory preparation took another couple of years," study co-author Patrick O'Connor, a professor of anatomical sciences at the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, told HuffPost in an email. 

Professional excavators and volunteers from Ohio University and the Natural History Museum of Utah helped the team unearth the horncores and various other skull pieces. The photo below shows one of those protrusions.

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Patrick OâConnor, Ohio University

"An effort like this underscores both the necessity and excitement of basic, exploratory science in order to better understand the history of the world around us," O'Connor said in a statement.

"Even in a place like western North America, where intense work has been conducted over the past 150 years, we are still finding species new to science," O'Connor added.

The photo below shows paleontologist Tobin Hieronymus excavating the Utah quarry where remains were found. 

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Patrick OâConnor, Ohio University

As it turns out, Machairoceratops is one of two new horned dinosaurs announced on Wednesday. A second one, found in Montana 10 years ago by an amateur fossil collector, was finally identified. Its name is Spiclypeus shipporum, or spiked shield. 

Eric Lund, a member of the Utah team that discovered Machairoceratops, remarked on the unrelated announcement horning in on his group's news.

"It's true," Lund told HuffPost in an email. "Today is the day of new horned dinosaurs. Still very exciting for the world of paleontology."

Scientists Discovered 9 New Dinosaurs In 2015
Qijianglong, or The Long-Necked Dragon(01 of08)
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Believed to have roamed Asia about 160 million years ago, the Qijianglong was identified by skull and vertebrae fossils unearthed by construction workers in 2006 near Quiang City, China. The dino's neck is extremely long, making up more than half of the creature's 49-foot body. (credit:Illustration: Lida Xing)
Yi qi, or The Mysterious Bat Pigeon(02 of08)
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Yi qi is Mandarin for "strange wing," which is appropriate since this tiny dino has totally puzzled scientists. Fossils dating back about 160 million years were discovered in China's Hebei Province and suggest the pigeon-sized creature had wings made of skin, like a bat's, instead of feathers. Scientists can't determine if these creatures flapped, glided or couldn't fly at all. (credit:Dinostar Co. Ltd./AP)
Saurornitholestes sullivani, or The Even More Lethal Velociraptor(03 of08)
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See those smaller dinos harassing a larger -- but helpless -- hadrosaur? That's S. sullivani, a newly identified raptor that is thought to be totally deadly thanks to a powerful sense of smell and its agility. “Although it was not large," one scientist said, "this was not a dinosaur you would want to mess with." (credit:Illustration: MARY P. WILLIAMS)
Zhenyuanlong suni, aka The Fluffy Chicken From Hell(04 of08)
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Well-preserved fossils found in China turned out to belong to a close relative of the Velociraptor. They suggest that real Velociraptors (not the "Jurassic Park" versions) were feathery and fluffy -- but just as lethal as they've always been known to be.

"The real Velociraptors," a paleontologist said, "would have been feathery, fluffy, winged Chickens from Hell."

While Zhenyuanlong suni may have had a set of birdlike wings, it was too short to fly and was likely used for show and egg protection. (credit:The University of Edinburgh)
Lightning Claw, aka T. Rex's Little Cousin(05 of08)
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With 10-inch claws, what else could scientists name this thing? The extraordinary meat-eating dinosaur was discovered in an opal mine in Australia, making its fossils a gorgeous blue color. The 22-foot-long beast was certainly no match for T. rex, but its huge hook-like claws definitely made it ferocious. (credit:JULIUS CSOTONYI)
Ugrunaaluk kuukpikensis, aka The Arctic Nightowl(06 of08)
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Ugrunaaluk kuukpikensis were "truly polar," according to scientists. Their fossils were discovered in northern Alaska, which means the large, duck-billed herbivore had the resilience to live in darkness for months at a time and endure the unforgiving environment. Scientists still aren't sure what they did for food during the long, hard winters. (credit:James Havens)
Hualianceratops wucaiwanensis, aka The Big-Headed Dog Dino(07 of08)
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Fossils found in China suggest the Triceratops had a super-weird relative. "It was probably about the size of a spaniel dog, with a relatively large head, and walked on its hind legs," a paleontologist told HuffPost. H. wucaiwanensis is thought to be the oldest known member of the ceratopsians genus (which includes the Triceratops) and its remains have helped scientists better understand the early evolution of horned dinosaurs. (credit:Portia Sloan Rollings)
Morelladon, aka The Humpback Sail(08 of08)
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Some 125 million years ago, these strange fellows wandered around what is now Spain. Their sail-like humpback stood about 2 feet tall and was likely used to either help regulate heat or to store fat. Most interesting is that these structures appear in many vertebrates throughout history, even those not closely related to each other. (credit:Carlos de Miguel Chaves)

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