Ceratosaurus was a predatory dinosaur that lived in the Late Jurassic period some 153 to 148 million years ago. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ceratosaurus was related to the birds that represented the earliest classes of theropod dinosaurs. This primitive predator was characterized by its hollow bones and pronounced S-shaped necks. It had a row of bony plates or armor called osteoderms running down its spine. On its head, it had a horn on top and forward-facing eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It had a nasal \"horn\", which helped newly hatched dinosaurs hatch from their eggs or was used for non-lethal fights between males. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ceratosaurus skeletons had been discovered in Utah and Colorado. The teeth are sometimes found scattered near the skeletons of lungfish skeletons that lurk beneath Jurassic rivers like crocodiles. It had a nasty jaw, full of very sharp, blade-like teeth designed to cut and crush bones and all that fun stuff. This large and fearsome carnivore grew from 15 to 19 feet long, about 4.6 to 6 meters long, and weighed about a ton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ceratosaurus walked on two powerful legs; it had a strong, broad, flexible tail that helped it swim. This would make it a good swimmer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Ceratosaurus can run up to 20 to 30 miles per hour...
Ceratosaurus lived in a semi-arid environment with distinct wet and dry seasons, and was sometimes found lurking near rivers to hunt.
Yes, Ceratosaurus was a primitive predator and usually went after smaller or larger herbivores. They had the ability to go alone, in pairs or in groups.\u00a0
\u00a0Ceratosaurus comes from the Greek word keras keratos meaning \"horn\" and \u03c3\u03b1\u1fe6\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 sauros meaning \"lizard\".
Ceratosaurus had deep jaws, very long, blade-like teeth that could tear flesh, a crest-like horn on the midline of the snout, and a pair of horns over the eyes used for incubating eggs or for fighting. It had short forelimbs, and had four fingers on the hand.