Pachycephalosaurus | The Living Battering Ram

Many dinosaurs are famous for their unique defenses. The Ankylosaurus sported incredible armor, the Triceratops wielded devastating horns, and the Stegosaurus swung a vicious tail. Pachycephalosaurus may be the most...peculiar in it's choice of weapons. This thick skull was capable of inflicting massive damage, but how feasible was it to use? Could a Pachycephalosaurus really stave off rivals and predators, or is the most damage only self inflicted? Let's find out!

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

[Mraboutpercent]

Pachycephalosaurus was always my favorite dinosaur growing up. It still holds that top spot, even after everything I've learned.

[kevinobill]

The old classic Pachycephalosaurus, thanks to The Lost World and Prehistoric Planet to show this animal for justice.

[anthonybusch]

I’m definitely familiar with Pachycephalosaurus. It is one of the most well-equipped dinosaurs of all. Like its relatives, Dracorex and Stygimoloch, it could run about as fast as an average Deer. It was also probably the same size as an average Bighorn Sheep or Grizzly Bear, and, like you said, the same weight as an average Bison. It is famous for having a large, bony dome atop its skull, up to 25 centimeters (10 inches) thick, which safely cushioned its brain. The dome's rear aspect was edged with bony knobs and short bony spikes were projected upwards from the snout. It is mostly likely that this strange headgear was used for head-butting competition for herd leadership and mating rights to females, but could also probably be used for defense against predators such as Dromaeosaurids. Pachycephalosaurus was a definite herbivore, feeding on a variety of plants like grass, leaves, shrubs, roots, flowers and fruit, but it will also “only” eat insects and grubs during the dry season to provide a little extra protein. It is believed that Pachycephalosaurus lived in swamps, forests, fields, meadows, lowlands, grasslands and plains of Montana, North and South Dakota, Wyoming and Alberta during the Late Cretaceous from about 68 - 65 million years ago. Along with its relatives, Dracorex and Stygimoloch, it also lived alongside Ankylosaurs, like Ankylosaurus and Euoplocephalus, Raptors, like Dakotaraptor and Dromaeosaurus, Ornithomimids, like Struthiomimus and Ornithomimus, Hadrosaurs, like Parasaurolophus, Corythosaurus and Edmontosaurus, Ceratopsians, like Styracosaurus, Torosaurus and Triceratops, and tyrannosaurids, like Gorgosaurus, Albertosaurus, Daspletosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex. From my experience, it is famously known from the Movies, The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997), and probably the Jurassic World movies, and the Land Before Time franchise, the TV Shows, Dinosaur King, as Diamond, one of the Secret Dinosaurs, and Primeval, as well as the Documentaries, Deadly Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Planet, in the third episode of the second season, Swamps. It has also been featured in the two linked All-New Netflix Original Series’, Dinotrux and Dinotrux: Supercharged, where it is the dinosaur basis of the half Pachycephalosaurus, half cement truck species of dinotrux, the Cementosaur, most notably as the two characters, Crunk and Chunk. Apart from those, it has also appeared in a menagerie of video games, like Jurassic Park: Operation Genesis (2003), LEGO Jurassic World (2015), as an unlockable dinosaur, The Isle (2015) Saurian (2017), Jurassic World: Evolution 1 & 2, (2018/21), and Path of Titans (2020), and will also be soon appearing in Prehistoric Kingdom (2022).

Anyways, good to hear from you again, Logan. I sure hope my other requests are going just as well as this one. But just take your time while creating them, as well as everyone else’s. Oh, and I also have a dinosaur question for you, too.

[Dysfunctional_Reprint]

Prehistoric Planet 2's Pachy made it one or my favorites.

[Anthelia.]

Pachy in path of titans is so fun! Bonking dinos into heavem

[maozilla]

How about Prehistoric frilled sharks like Chlamydoselachus garmani Dykeius garethi and Rolfodon?