Few dinosaurs evoke the imaginations of both kids and kids-at-heart like the Triceratops; these dinosaurs are among some of the most famous out there, and their features certainly lend to their popularity. These plant-eaters lived right at the end of the Cretaceous Period, about 68 to 65 million years ago—which means yes, they likely would have gone extinct directly as a result of the asteroid impact that wiped them and their dinosaur peers out. (You can read more about Triceratops’ dinosaur peers here at modernsciences.org!)
It’s no secret that the most distinctive features of the Triceratops sit on its head. Its name was derived from Latin, which translates to “three-horned face.” These horns sit atop a head that carries even more oddities, like a beak for a mouth despite the plant-eating teeth that lie within. Of course, we can’t forget about the Triceratops’ distinct bony frill, which scientists believe may have been used by males who dressed to impress potential mates. One other distinct feature of Triceratops, however, hides behind the large, imposing frill: it possesses a weird ball-and-socket neck joint.
The ball-and-socket joint, located at the base of the skull, allowed the skull to rotate in any direction. This gave Triceratops the ability to move its head in a circular motion, which would have been useful for foraging for food. It likely would have also carried pretty strong neck muscles, which would have made it possible for the animal to rear its head up for defense as well as foraging. And strong muscles it definitely needed, as all those horns and bony frills made the Triceratops’ head particularly heavy. (Mind you—that skull was roughly 30% the length of a Triceratops’ entire body!)
For comparison, we humans possess a pivot joint in our necks, which, while allowing some degree of movement, is not as flexible as those on a Triceratops. Our ball-and-socket joints are instead found in our hip and shoulder joints; this is part of the reason why we can move our arms and legs in such a wide variety of ways.
So take a step back and appreciate just how wild nature can run when it comes to evolution. It can produce all kinds of body structures, from animals that all look suspiciously like crabs to giant reptiles that are basically walking shields with horns.
References
- Hone, D. E., Wood, D., & Knell, R. (2016). Positive allometry for exaggerated structures in the ceratopsian dinosaur Protoceratops andrewsi supports socio-sexual signaling. Palaeontologia Electronica. https://doi.org/10.26879/591
- Hopkins Medicine. (2021, May 3). Anatomy of a Joint. Johns Hopkins Medicine. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/anatomy-of-a-joint
- McKeever, A. (2020, September 14). Why Triceratops, a prehistoric herbivore, looked so fierce. National Geographic. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/facts/triceratops-horridus
