A recently unearthed dinosaur species, closely related to Triceratops, boasts some of the most peculiar horns ever seen on a dinosaur. This newfound ceratopsian, discovered in Montana, has astonished paleontologists with its unique asymmetrical skull and array of unique head ornaments. These include two long horns above its nose and three horns on its frill — the largest of which were shaped like scimitars.
In 2019, paleontologists uncovered the remains of this new species on private property near the US-Canada border. The fossils were subsequently acquired by the Museum of Evolution in Denmark, where they are now on display.
The Dinosaur with Scimitar-Shaped Horns
Named Lokiceratops rangiformis, this dinosaur roamed the Earth approximately 78 million years ago. The dinosaur’s name is a nod to the Norse god Loki, due to the dinosaur’s new Scandinavian home and its curved antlers. The species name, rangiformis, highlights the similarity between the dinosaur’s middle-frill horns and reindeer antlers. Together, the species’ name can be roughly translated to “Loki’s horned face that looks like a caribou.”
“The dinosaur now has a permanent home in Denmark, so we went with a Norse god, and in the end, doesn’t it just really look like Loki with the curving blades?” said Mark Loewen, a paleontologist at the University of Utah, referring to the trickster god’s weapon of choice.
It measured about 6.7 meters in length and weighed around 5 metric tons. That’s about the size of a mini-bus — large and menacing, but within the boundaries of what’s expected from a ceratopsian.
What makes Lokiceratops stand out is its extraordinary head ornaments. It had two long horns at the front of its head and three prominent horns on the frill at the back. The most striking were the frill horns, which were flat, broad, and curved like scimitars, measuring over 60 centimeters (≈23 inches) in length.
Moreover, the horns are asymmetrical, resembling the tines of reindeer antlers. Although uncommon, this kind of asymmetry is not unheard of in horned dinosaurs. Despite its large facial appendages, the dinosaur lacks the nose horn that is so iconic among its kin.
More for show
Despite its menacing horns, paleontologists believe these horns were more likely used for display rather than defense. Like modern birds, Lokiceratops probably adapted to growing large horns for mate selection or species recognition.
“This new dinosaur pushes the envelope on bizarre ceratopsian headgear, sporting the largest frill horns ever seen in a ceratopsian,” Joseph Sertich, co-author of the new study and a researcher at Colorado State University, said in a press release announcing the dinosaur’s unveiling at the Natural History Museum of Utah, where a replica is displayed.
“These skull ornaments are one of the keys to unlocking horned dinosaur diversity and demonstrate that evolutionary selection for showy displays contributed to the dizzying richness of Cretaceous ecosystems.”
Lokiceratops lived during the Late Cretaceous period on an island continent known as Laramidia, now part of western North America. This region was home to a diverse array of Ceratopsid dinosaurs, including five different species found in the same fossil assemblage. During the Late Cretaceous period, two distinct horned dinosaur groups dominated the western subcontinent, Laramidia. Chasmosaurines, ancestors of Triceratops, primarily roamed the southern half, while Centrosaurines, Lokiceratops’ family, favored the north.
“It’s unheard-of diversity to find five living together, similar to what you would see on the plains of East Africa today with different horned ungulates,” Sertich said.
What Lokiceratops Reveals About the Strange Evolution of Horned Dinosaurs
Interestingly, Lokiceratops is the fourth Centrosaurine unearthed from its Montana ecosystem. This suggests that Lokiceratops and other related species evolved rapidly within a small area. However, by the time Triceratops appeared some 12 million years later, only two species of horned dinosaurs dominated a large area from Canada to Mexico — perhaps in response to a more homogenous climate.
Lokiceratops was described based on fragmentary fossils that were pieced together to reveal an incomplete skull. Initially, the researchers believed they had a Medusaceratops skull. But upon closer examination of the shattered pieces, they noticed distinct features — the absence of a nose horn, hollow brow horns, and the massive, curved frill spikes unlike anything seen before in a horned dinosaur.
Not everyone agrees with the new species classification. Paleontologists advise caution, pointing out that many ceratopsian species have been based on limited remains. Lokiceratops’ features, like the hollow brow horns, could be signs of a mature Medusaceratops or simply genetic variations. The study’s authors agree that more fossil discoveries are needed, although for different reasons — they believe many more horned dinosaur species from this period will be soon described.
“Lokiceratops helps us understand that we are only scratching the surface when it comes to the diversity and relationships within the family tree of horned dinosaurs,” Loewen said.
The amazing dinosaur was described in the journal PeerJ.
