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Ceratopsia
Ceratopsia (sair-uh-TOP-see-ah) means “horned face,” and the quadrupedal
members of this infraorder of suborder Marginocephalia sported various
numbers and lengths of horns sprouting from their heads. The horns may
have been used for defense against predators such as Tyrannosaurus, and
also for interacting with members of its own species, in ways similar to
the behavior of present-day deer or antelope. They also had parrot-like
beaks with no teeth, suitable for chopping the vegetation they fed upon.
The earlier members of this infraorder, such as Protoceratops, had the
characteristic beaks, but lacked the horns of later ceratopsians.
The most famous and largest member of the family was one of its last --
Triceratops had three forward-facing horns: one above each eye and one
projecting from its nose.
Styracosaurus, a relatively small ceratopsian weighing about three tons,
was distinguished by a massive, elongated skull that was pointed at the
front and extended back to form a distinctive neck frill ornamented with
long, tapering spikes.
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