Stenopelix | Facts & Information

The stenopelix dinosaur was a prehistoric herbivorous animal of 1.5 m that impressed by the bony crest, which stretched from the forehead area to near the end of the tail.

On their basis palentologist Hermann von Mayer managed to make a partial reconstruction of the skeleton, made a detailed description, ranked the species in the group of ceratopsids and named it Stenopelix valdensis.

The incomplete skeleton of this dinosaur was stored in the collection of the Adolfinum Lyceum in Buckeburg in 1969. Later, some researchers placed this discovery in the group of pachycephalosaurs, even though this skeleton was missing a very important part – the skull – which would have brought new elements to the presentation of the species.

The fact is that these prehistoric animals lived in the Mesozoic era, during the Lower Cretaceous period, about 140-130 million years ago.

The forelimbs were smaller and thinner, they ended with long fingers and sharp claws, with their help they caught the bundles of vegetation and brought them near the muzzle.

The hind limbs were muscular and strong, so the gait was always bipedal, and the balance of the body was maintained with the help of the long tail, which gradually thinned from the base to the top. When in danger this dinosaur was trying to escape by running, the conformation of the bones of its hind limbs shows that it had the ability to run very fast.

The neck was long and muscular, supported and easily moved the small head ending with a parrot-like beak, devoid of teeth but provided with sharp edges, which managed to tear even the vegetation harder.

Food

It is suspected that they populated forested areas, were organized in large flocks of hundreds of specimens and fed on plants at ground level.