Parasaurolophus

Parasaurolophus
Parasaurolophus, Parks, 1922

number on the map: 26

Superorder: Dinosauria
Clade: Ornithischia

Parasaurolophus belongs to duck-billed dinosaurs.It lived in North America. It locomoted on two or four limbs. It probably fed on four legs but moved only on two. A feature distinguishing Parasaurolophus from other dinosaurs was the crest on the head, which could reach about 1 metre in length. This bone was hollow inside, which made it easier to carry such a form on the head.

The crest is supposed to have served as a resonance chamber to produce sounds during the mating season, to have been used for thermoregulation and recognise individuals and their sex within the species.

body length: 10 m
body mass: 3 000 kg
temporal range: 76,5–73 mya