Micropachycephalosaurus facts for kids

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Micropachycephalosaurus (meaning 'tiny thick headed lizard') is a genus of ornithischian dinosaur from the Upper Cretaceous. It was a herbivore, and lived in what is now Shandong, China. It was one of the smallest dinosaur ever discovered, just over a meter long, but with the longest name. Before it was discovered Compsognathus was the smallest known dinosaur.

The lack of the skull roof means the fossil cannot be placed at family level. It might or might not be a pachycephalosaur. Butler and Zhao therefore classified it as an indeterminate member of the Cerapoda. In 2011, cladistic analysis showed that Micropachycephalosaurus is a basal member of the Ceratopsia. In this context, basal does not mean 'ancestral'; the fossil is far too late for that. It means simply 'unspecialized', or lacking derived traits.

Related pages

• Wannanosaurus

See also

In Spanish: Micropachycephalosaurus hongtuyanensis para niños