“The Horned Dinosaur of the Alberta Bonebeds”
Binomial Centrosaurus apertus · sen-troh-SORE-us
Late Cretaceous - 76-75 Ma
IllustrationCentrosaurus fossil records in Fossil Atlas are mapped as selected modern discovery locations, with 18 source-backed records currently shown. Western Canada and nearby Cretaceous interior records, especially Dinosaur Park Formation context with related Judith River records in the source mix. Key mapped formations in the current dataset include Judith River Formation, Oldman, Mesaverde. These pins are fossil record locations, not a complete ancient habitat map.
Centrosaurus was a short-frilled ceratopsian from Late Cretaceous western Canada. Fossil Atlas uses it to expand Dinosaur Park Formation coverage and distinguish Canadian ceratopsian records from later Triceratops-heavy Hell Creek pages.
Drawn true to scale on a metre ruler.
Length
measured5.5 m · 18 ft
Largest known specimens
Height
measured1.8 m (6 ft)
Body mass
estimate2,700 kg · 6,000 lb
Typical adult
Top speed
estimate32 km/h · 20 mph
Modelled, debated
Centrosaurus is associated with some of the largest dinosaur bonebeds in the fossil record, containing hundreds to thousands of individuals of different ages. These accumulations have been interpreted as evidence for large-scale herding and mass mortality during flooding events as herds crossed swollen rivers. Whether Centrosaurus herded in anything like the way modern wildebeest do is impossible to confirm, but the bonebed scale is consistent with group living.
The horn
A single large nasal horn with curved hooks on the frill margin. The nasal horn was the primary visual identifier and the most likely structure used in display or within-species competition.
The frill
Shorter and more ornamented than Triceratops' frill, with paired hooks along the margin. Probably used for display and species recognition.
Bonebeds
Mass accumulation sites, including the Centrosaurus Bonebed in Dinosaur Provincial Park, preserve multiple individuals at different growth stages, giving researchers population-level data uncommon in the dinosaur record.
Feeding
A beak and battery of cheek teeth for processing tough low vegetation, the same basic system as other ceratopsids.
Position of this animal’s known range across 252 million years of the Mesozoic and beyond.
76-75 million years ago
Centrosaurus is closely associated with some of the most productive Canadian dinosaur deposits.
Large bonebeds make it important for understanding ceratopsian population-level fossil records.
It is a useful contrast with later, long-brow-horned ceratopsians such as Triceratops.
Lawrence Lambe described Centrosaurus in 1904 from Alberta material with a prominent nasal horn. The Dinosaur Provincial Park area has since produced enormous quantities of Centrosaurus material, particularly from mass-death assemblages. The Centrosaurus Bonebed, one of the most studied sites in Canadian palaeontology, has been excavated over many decades and continues to yield information about population structure, growth rates, and mortality patterns.
Animals known from the same deposits and time as Centrosaurus.
Other members of Ceratopsidae.
Triceratops
A later, larger ceratopsid with long brow horns rather than a nasal horn, from the very end of the Cretaceous.
Protoceratops
A much smaller ancestral ceratopsian from Asia, without the large horns.
Pachyrhinosaurus
A Canadian ceratopsid that replaced the nasal horn with a broad bony boss, from slightly later deposits.
Pins show selected fossil records for Centrosaurus; use them as modern discovery evidence, not a complete range map. Modern fossil discovery map: pins show where selected fossil and specimen records were found today, not ancient Earth positions. What does this mean?
Specimen evidence
These are sourced specimen assets, separate from reconstruction artwork. Only media with clear open or reusable rights is displayed by default.
Centrosaurus is represented here by selected fossil records from western canada and nearby cretaceous interior records, especially dinosaur park formation context with related judith river records in the source mix. Fossil Atlas maps those records as modern discovery locations.
No. The map shows modern fossil discovery locations from selected records. Ancient habitat and paleogeographic reconstructions are separate questions.
The current Fossil Atlas records include Judith River Formation. Formation coverage depends on the selected dataset and may not be complete.
Yes. Use the expedition card generator to turn the Centrosaurus map and specimen profile into a shareable card.
Selected fossil records from PBDB and museum biodiversity aggregators. This is not a complete fossil count by country; source labels and confidence notes help distinguish canonical paleobiology records from specimen-media records.
Reconstruction images are labeled illustrations and do not represent fossil evidence. Size, speed, and bite-force figures are typical published estimates and remain subject to revision as new specimens are described.
Maps use curated PBDB, museum, and specimen-source records with visible caveats.
Pins show where fossils were found or reported today, not exact ancient habitat positions.
Artwork is labeled separately from specimen photos, maps, and source records.
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