Kulceratops
Encyclopedia
Kulceratops is a genus
of ceratopsian dinosaur
from the Early Cretaceous
. It lived in the late Albian
stage
. It is one of the few ceratopsians known from this period. However, the fossils from this genus have been sparse: only jaw and tooth fragments have been found so far.
is Kulceratops kulensis. Both the genus name and the specific name are derived from the Khodzhakul Formation
, kul meaning "lake" in Uzbek
. Its fossils were found in Uzbekistan
, central Asia
. The holotype
, CCMGE No. 495/12457, was in 1914 discovered by geologist Andrei Dmitrievich Arkhangelsky. It consists of a left maxilla
, of which the front end has been broken off.
for "horned face"), a group of herbivorous dinosaurs with parrot
-like beaks which thrived in North America
and Asia
during the Cretaceous Period. As Kulceratops is the oldest known neoceratopian, Nesov assigned it to a special Archaeoceratopidae. Later workers considered it a member of the Protoceratopidae or at least a basal member of Neoceratopia. Due to the paucity of the remains, it is considered a nomen dubium
. During the early Cretaceous, flowering plants were "geographically limited on the landscape", and so it is likely that this dinosaur fed on the predominant plants of the era: ferns, cycads and conifers. It would have used its sharp ceratopsian beak to bite off the leaves or needles.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of ceratopsian dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
from the Early Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
. It lived in the late Albian
Albian
The Albian is both an age of the geologic timescale and a stage in the stratigraphic column. It is the youngest or uppermost subdivision of the Early/Lower Cretaceous epoch/series. Its approximate time range is 112.0 ± 1.0 Ma to 99.6 ± 0.9 Ma...
stage
Faunal stage
In chronostratigraphy, a stage is a succession of rock strata laid down in a single age on the geologic timescale, which usually represents millions of years of deposition. A given stage of rock and the corresponding age of time will by convention have the same name, and the same boundaries.Rock...
. It is one of the few ceratopsians known from this period. However, the fossils from this genus have been sparse: only jaw and tooth fragments have been found so far.
Naming
Kulceratops was named by Lev Alexandrovich Nesov in 1995. The type speciesType species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
is Kulceratops kulensis. Both the genus name and the specific name are derived from the Khodzhakul Formation
Khodzhakul Formation
The Khodzhakul Formation is a Mesozoic geologic formation. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Paleofauna:-References:...
, kul meaning "lake" in Uzbek
Uzbek language
Uzbek is a Turkic language and the official language of Uzbekistan. It has about 25.5 million native speakers, and it is spoken by the Uzbeks in Uzbekistan and elsewhere in Central Asia...
. Its fossils were found in Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, central Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. The holotype
Holotype
A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...
, CCMGE No. 495/12457, was in 1914 discovered by geologist Andrei Dmitrievich Arkhangelsky. It consists of a left maxilla
Maxilla
The maxilla is a fusion of two bones along the palatal fissure that form the upper jaw. This is similar to the mandible , which is also a fusion of two halves at the mental symphysis. Sometimes The maxilla (plural: maxillae) is a fusion of two bones along the palatal fissure that form the upper...
, of which the front end has been broken off.
Classification
Kulceratops belonged to the Ceratopsia (the name is GreekAncient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
for "horned face"), a group of herbivorous dinosaurs with parrot
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...
-like beaks which thrived in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
during the Cretaceous Period. As Kulceratops is the oldest known neoceratopian, Nesov assigned it to a special Archaeoceratopidae. Later workers considered it a member of the Protoceratopidae or at least a basal member of Neoceratopia. Due to the paucity of the remains, it is considered a nomen dubium
Nomen dubium
In zoological nomenclature, a nomen dubium is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application...
Diet
Kulceratops, like all ceratopsians, was a herbivoreHerbivore
Herbivores are organisms that are anatomically and physiologically adapted to eat plant-based foods. Herbivory is a form of consumption in which an organism principally eats autotrophs such as plants, algae and photosynthesizing bacteria. More generally, organisms that feed on autotrophs in...
. During the early Cretaceous, flowering plants were "geographically limited on the landscape", and so it is likely that this dinosaur fed on the predominant plants of the era: ferns, cycads and conifers. It would have used its sharp ceratopsian beak to bite off the leaves or needles.