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EXHIBIT 133

Leptoceratops

Leptoceratops gracilis

Leptoceratops was a hornless, short-frilled plant eater whose teeth preserve evidence of complex chewing. [1] [3]

Evidence profile

TWO WAYS TO PICTURE THE PAST

Compare the evidence with the familiar movie image. The illustrations are not to a shared scale.

01 / FOSSIL VIEW

The evidence in the bones

Leptoceratops skeletal displays at the Canadian Museum of Nature.

Museum displays identified as Leptoceratops at the Canadian Museum of Nature. The source does not identify their specimen numbers or life stages; mounting includes restoration. Fossil colors do not establish living colors or soft tissues. [1]

Leptoceratopsidae - Leptoceratops.JPG · Hectonichus. CC BY-SA 3.0. Proportionally resized Commons preview and converted to WebP; no anatomy edits.

The photograph or figure shows the credited fossil material; displayed mounts and labels can include interpretation.

02 / MOVIE-STYLE INTERPRETATION

A cinematic imagination

Illustrative reconstruction of Leptoceratops; colors, soft tissues and restored details remain interpretive.

Original cinematic interpretation of Leptoceratops gracilis. Colors, soft tissues, scenery and missing anatomy are reconstructed artistic choices; this is not a directly observed individual or behavior. The quiet stance is a comparative reconstruction rather than evidence for a particular gait or social behavior. The short low frill and complete body outline are reconstructed interpretations. Lighting, coloration and scenery are artistic choices. This image does not document a fossil locality or behavior.

Original artwork · artistic interpretation.

Scientific view: source-informed reconstruction, credited paleoart or specimen-based imagery. Movie-style view: Original artistic interpretation. Reconstructions involve uncertainty.

PERIODLate Cretaceous[7]
DIETHerbivoreEvidence and uncertainty in the dossier
TOTAL LENGTHSee the dossierEstimate scope matters
FOSSILS FOUNDAlberta, Canada, Montana, USA[7]
CompareRead the dossierView the sources

MEET THE ANIMAL

Meet Leptoceratops

Leptoceratops was a plant-eating dinosaur from near the end of the Cretaceous in North America. A museum reference of about three metres gives a rough idea of size without establishing a measured adult range. It belonged to the wider ceratopsian group, but its profile should be understood through its own fossil evidence rather than a scaled-down picture of a giant horned dinosaur. [D2]

Microscopic tooth scratches in one specimen trace a curved path. Researchers used them to model a chewing stroke involving both closing and pulling the lower jaw backward. This is more complex than a simple scissors-like bite. The wear provides evidence of food processing without revealing every plant the animal ate or an entire seasonal feeding routine. [D3]

Shoulder and limb anatomy favors mainly four-legged movement, while earlier two-legged interpretations remain part of the discussion. The comparison does not measure running speed. A restored skeleton may present a stance, but the evidence can support questions about movement. Leptoceratops is informative when details of feeding and locomotion stay distinct from that display pose. [D4]

PREHISTORIC ANIMAL DOSSIER

A life in profile.

The animal, the evidence, and the questions still open.

A deep lower jaw and curved tooth-wear scratches suggest sophisticated food processing. Proposed communal nesting remains tentative. [D3] [D5]

Profile scope: L. gracilis, using named Canadian and United States material; historical species now assigned to other genera are excluded. [D8]

Time
Late Cretaceous
Fossil locations in this exhibit
Alberta, Canada, Montana, USA
How to read the evidence

Source supported identifies a description documented by the cited source. Inferred marks a reconstruction or functional estimate. Debated marks competing interpretations. Not established means the sources reviewed for this dossier do not support a firm conclusion; it does not mean a behavior never occurred.

A size reference is an estimate, not a population range. Nesting evidence does not by itself establish courtship, mate choice, or lifelong pairing.

Length

Inferred

About 3 m; museum reference

The museum gives an educational length without an individual, life stage or method. It is not an established adult range. [D2]

Body mass

Inferred

About 416 kg; AMNH5205 model

Limb-circumference estimate. The type collection contains two individuals; maturity is unconfirmed. This reference model is not a species range. [D6] [D1]

Diet

Source supported

Plant eater with complex chewing

Museum classification supports herbivory. In CMN8889, curved wear scratches support a rotating, retracting lower-jaw power stroke; specific plants are unresolved. [D2] [D3]

Habitat

Inferred

Continental environments near the end of the Cretaceous

Scollard material in Alberta and Hell Creek occurrences in Montana document latest Maastrichtian settings. These occurrences do not establish one preferred microhabitat. [D7] [D5]

Locomotion

Inferred

Probably mainly quadrupedal

A 2019 comparison favors four-footed locomotion from shoulder and limb anatomy. Earlier bipedal interpretations remain relevant; exact gait and speed are unmeasured. [D4]

Distinctive anatomy

Source supported

Deep jaws and a short, hornless skull

The original material preserves an unusually deep lower jaw, single-rooted teeth and no nasal horn. Its relatively long tail includes tall spines and chevrons. [D1]

Reproduction & life together

Reproduction and growth

Inferred

Communal nesting proposed, unconfirmed

A 2019 conference abstract interprets three adult/juvenile bonebeds as collapsed nesting burrows. Egg identity, parenting and recurrent brood use remain hypotheses requiring fuller testing. [D5]

Courtship and mating

Not established

Not established here

Reviewed skull and dental studies do not establish sexually distinct ornamentation, mating season or courtship rituals. [D3]

Social behavior

Inferred

Possible aggregations; interpretation provisional

Multiple age classes occur in the reported Montana assemblages. The communal-burrow hypothesis does not establish herd size, family relationships or lifelong social organization. [D5]

Dossier research & sources

Sources and inspection notes for the claims in this profile.

  1. Leptoceratops, a new genus of Ceratopsia from the Edmonton Cretaceous of AlbertaBulletin of the American Museum of Natural History; Brown (1914) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original article inspected through digitized Internet Archive OCR of the museum publication. Two associated individuals, type AMNH5205, hornless skull, deep jaw and partial skeleton; historical formation names not used as modern stage dates. · Inspected: page
  2. LeptoceratopsNatural History Museum, London · Accessed 2026-10-02Museum profile inspected:3m reference, herbivory, latest Cretaceous and Canada/USA. Specimen and maturity unspecified for size. · Inspected: page
  3. Dental microwear reveals mammal-like chewing in the neoceratopsian dinosaur Leptoceratops gracilisPeerJ; Varriale (2016) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original full text inspected via EuropePMC XML: quantitative CMN8889 microwear, qualitative AMNH FR5205 support and curved jaw power stroke. YPM VPPU018133 is qualitatively compared but its Leptoceratops referral is disputed; possible Prenoceratops assignment discussed. · Inspected: page
  4. Appendicular skeleton of Protoceratops andrewsi: comparative morphology, ontogenetic changes, and implications for non-ceratopsid ceratopsian locomotionPeerJ; Słowiak, Tereshchenko and Fostowicz-Frelik (2019) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original full comparative discussion inspected via EuropePMC XML. Leptoceratops shoulder, forelimb and femur interpreted as mainly quadrupedal; competing bipedality proposals discussed. Protoceratops growth patterns not transferred. · Inspected: page
  5. The Horned Dinosaur Leptoceratops Raised its Young in Communal Nesting Burrows: Evidence from Three New BonebedsNorth Dakota Geological Survey conference program; Fowler et al. (2019) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original conference abstract inspected on museum/program pages. Three Montana Hell Creek adult/juvenile bonebeds; proposed communal burrow nesting and alternative burial interpretation, not a full peer-reviewed behavioral demonstration. · Inspected: abstract
  6. Rates of Dinosaur Body Mass Evolution Indicate 170 Million Years of Sustained Ecological Innovation on the Avian Stem LineagePLOS Biology; Benson et al. (2014) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original DatasetS1 spreadsheet and methods inspected. L.gracilis AMNH5205 model416.195kg from measured limb circumferences (femur162mm,humerus117mm). Immature flag0 is not positive maturity evidence. · Inspected: page
  7. A new leptoceratopsid dinosaur from Maastrichtian-aged deposits of the Sustut Basin, northern British Columbia, CanadaPeerJ; Arbour and Evans (2019) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original full article inspected via EuropePMC XML, including comparative taxonomy, occurrence discussion and latest Maastrichtian Leptoceratops range. Ferrisaurus kept distinct. · Inspected: page
  8. A redescription of the Montanoceratops cerorhynchus holotype, with a review of referred materialNew Perspectives on Horned Dinosaurs; Makovicky (2010) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original Montanoceratops chapter preview inspected: historical Leptoceratops cerorhynchus combination separated from L.gracilis. Full chapter inaccessible. · Inspected: excerpt

THE STORY IN THE FOSSILS

Meet Leptoceratops

Microscopic scratches in CMN8889 trace a curved path across the tooth surfaces. They led to a jaw-motion model involving both closure and backward movement, rather than a simple scissors-like bite. [3]

Leptoceratops combines a small frill with a strong jaw and no nasal horn. Those features distinguish it from the much larger horned dinosaurs familiar from the same final Cretaceous interval. [1] [2]

A note on scale and time

The dossier identifies the scope of each reference estimate. A mount, an individual fossil and a species-wide adult range are different measurements. Comparison metrics remain unavailable where adult scope has not been established. Unknown does not mean zero.

Sources & editorial notes

Sources support the stated claims and scopes. Refer to the evidence notes for uncertainty.

  1. Leptoceratops, a new genus of Ceratopsia from the Edmonton Cretaceous of AlbertaBulletin of the American Museum of Natural History; Brown (1914) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original article inspected through digitized Internet Archive OCR of the museum publication. Two associated individuals, type AMNH5205, hornless skull, deep jaw and partial skeleton; historical formation names not used as modern stage dates. · Inspected: page
  2. LeptoceratopsNatural History Museum, London · Accessed 2026-10-02Museum profile inspected:3m reference, herbivory, latest Cretaceous and Canada/USA. Specimen and maturity unspecified for size. · Inspected: page
  3. Dental microwear reveals mammal-like chewing in the neoceratopsian dinosaur Leptoceratops gracilisPeerJ; Varriale (2016) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original full text inspected via EuropePMC XML: quantitative CMN8889 microwear, qualitative AMNH FR5205 support and curved jaw power stroke. YPM VPPU018133 is qualitatively compared but its Leptoceratops referral is disputed; possible Prenoceratops assignment discussed. · Inspected: page
  4. Appendicular skeleton of Protoceratops andrewsi: comparative morphology, ontogenetic changes, and implications for non-ceratopsid ceratopsian locomotionPeerJ; Słowiak, Tereshchenko and Fostowicz-Frelik (2019) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original full comparative discussion inspected via EuropePMC XML. Leptoceratops shoulder, forelimb and femur interpreted as mainly quadrupedal; competing bipedality proposals discussed. Protoceratops growth patterns not transferred. · Inspected: page
  5. The Horned Dinosaur Leptoceratops Raised its Young in Communal Nesting Burrows: Evidence from Three New BonebedsNorth Dakota Geological Survey conference program; Fowler et al. (2019) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original conference abstract inspected on museum/program pages. Three Montana Hell Creek adult/juvenile bonebeds; proposed communal burrow nesting and alternative burial interpretation, not a full peer-reviewed behavioral demonstration. · Inspected: abstract
  6. Rates of Dinosaur Body Mass Evolution Indicate 170 Million Years of Sustained Ecological Innovation on the Avian Stem LineagePLOS Biology; Benson et al. (2014) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original DatasetS1 spreadsheet and methods inspected. L.gracilis AMNH5205 model416.195kg from measured limb circumferences (femur162mm,humerus117mm). Immature flag0 is not positive maturity evidence. · Inspected: page
  7. A new leptoceratopsid dinosaur from Maastrichtian-aged deposits of the Sustut Basin, northern British Columbia, CanadaPeerJ; Arbour and Evans (2019) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original full article inspected via EuropePMC XML, including comparative taxonomy, occurrence discussion and latest Maastrichtian Leptoceratops range. Ferrisaurus kept distinct. · Inspected: page
  8. A redescription of the Montanoceratops cerorhynchus holotype, with a review of referred materialNew Perspectives on Horned Dinosaurs; Makovicky (2010) · Accessed 2026-10-02Original Montanoceratops chapter preview inspected: historical Leptoceratops cerorhynchus combination separated from L.gracilis. Full chapter inaccessible. · Inspected: excerpt

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