Scientists have discovered a new, very cool-looking dinosaur. The intricately horned beast is a relative of the famous and has been named . It’s thought to have roamed around the western half of North America over 78 million years ago, back when the continent was split into several large island masses.
The discovery and naming of was made by a large group of researchers from the U.S., Canada, UK, Denmark, and Panama.
The fossils used to determine its identity were excavated from the badlands of northern Montana, not too far from Canada. Back then, the area was thought to have primarily been swamps and floodplains. And is thought to have made its home along the eastern shores of Laramidia—an island continent during the Late Cretaceous period that existed as a result of the Western Interior Seaway splitting what we now call North America into two.
The dinosaur’s first name refers to the Norse God Loki, known for his horned attire, while the second is a nod to caribou, present-day animals that tend to have asymmetric antlers. Put the two together and literally means: “Loki’s horned face that looks like a caribou.” is part of a diverse group of dinosaurs known as ceratopsids, which are thought to have first emerged around 92 million years ago.
Ceratopsids were successful as a whole, with members living all the way up until the end of the dinosaur age 66 million years ago (when, you know...
). But scientists believe that belonged to a much more narrow niche of these din.