Pronunciation: co-wah-WEE-lah-SEH-ruh-tops
Meaning: Coahuila horn face
Author/s: Loewen et al. (2010)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Coahuila, Mexico
Discovery Chart Position: #697
Coahuilaceratops magnacuerna
Coahuilaceratops was the first ceratopsian and, in fact, only the fourth-ever dinosaur of any stamp from Mexico to be named and described in the scientific literature, and it's a cracker. Although incomplete, it was heralded as one of the horniest dinosaurs discovered thus far, as its proud appendages—thicker and longer than in any other known ceratopsid (herbivorous and horned dinosaur)—were even longer than the face to which they are attached.
In contrast to its 1.2 meter-long brow horns, the nose horn of Coahuilaceratops was modest, to say the least. But it was also unique among chasmosaurines—the ceratopsid sub-family that also includes the likes of Triceratops and Torosaurus—in being stumpy and rounded.
Coahuilaceratops was discovered in 2001 near the town of Porvenir de Jalpa, approximately 40 miles west of Saltillo, and was excavated in 2003. But it wasn't alone. Alongside the adult holotype, palaeontologists discovered a juvenile of the same species, as well as a rich assemblage of other Late Cretaceous fauna: bones from duck-billed dinosaurs (some of which were recently named Velafrons coahuilensis), a large tyrannosaur-type carnivore and some smaller Velociraptor-like predators. The same quarry also yielded remains of two additional, yet-to-be-named ceratopsians, bringing the total number of horned dinosaur discoveries in 2010 to... oooh... loads!
Coahuilaceratops was discovered in 2001 near the town of Porvenir de Jalpa, approximately 40 miles west of Saltillo, and was excavated in 2003. But it wasn't alone. Alongside the adult holotype, palaeontologists discovered a juvenile of the same species, as well as a rich assemblage of other Late Cretaceous fauna: bones from duck-billed dinosaurs (some of which were recently named Velafrons coahuilensis), a large tyrannosaur-type carnivore and some smaller Velociraptor-like predators. The same quarry also yielded remains of two additional, yet-to-be-named ceratopsians, bringing the total number of horned dinosaur discoveries in 2010 to... oooh... loads!
(Great-horned Coahuila horn face)Etymology
Coahuilaceratops is derived from "Coahuila" (the Mexican state where it was found), and the Greek "keras" (horn) and "ops" (face). The species epithet, magnacuerna (mag-NAH-KWER-na), is a mash-up of Latin and Spanish, and means "great horn", in reference to its huge brow horns.
The name was initially published, albeit unofficially, on a Mexican news site in 2008.
Discovery
The first remains of Coahuilaceratops were discovered in the Cerro del Pueblo Formation (Difunta Group, Parras Basin), Coahuila State, Mexico, by Claudio de Leon in 2001. It was excavated in 2003 and took another two years of meticulous work by volunteer preparator Jerry Golden before it was ready to study.
The holotype (CPC 276, housed at the Museum of the Desert in Saltillo, Mexico) is a partial skull. Remains of a juvenile animal of the same species (CPC 277) were also found at the site.
Preparator
Jerry Golden.
Habitat
During the Late Cretaceous, Coahuila's Cerro del Pueblo Formation was a humid estuary with lush vegetation, where salt water from the ocean mixed with fresh water from rivers, much like the modern Gulf Coast of the southeastern United States. Many dinosaur bones in the area are covered with fossilized snails and marine clams, indicating that their owners inhabited environments close to the seashore.
