One of the Most Complete Triceratops Skeletons Ever Found Discovered in Wyoming

Paleontologists excavating a site in Wyoming have the opportunity to "rewrite the book" on the triceratops after uncovering what may be one of the most complete triceratops skeletons ever found.

The dig, which began in May near Newcastle, Wyo. is ongoing and expected to last four more weeks.

Scientists from the South Dakota-based Black Hills Institute of Geological Research and Naturalis Biodiversity Center in the Netherlands, who are excavating the site together, say the find is unprecedented not only because of the totality of the triceratops skeleton, but also because of the two other triceratops skeletons also unearthed at the same site.

The three skeletons were most likely from a family unit, said Pete Larson, president of the Black Hills Institute, according to a report by the Rapid City Journal. The dig also unearthed the left foot and leg of a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

"The dig indicates that there was some sort of parental pair and nowhere in the literature has that ever been noted before, and that's unprecedented," he said.

While the triceratops, with its distinct three-horned dome and fanned bone hood, might be most well known of the herbivore dinosaurs, only two relatively complete triceratops skeletons have ever been found, according to an Associated Press report. The triceratops, which lived during the Late Cretaceous period, which ended some 65 million years ago, were preyed upon by the carnivorous dinosaurs of the era. Because triceratops was often the dinner of another dinosaur, complete skeletons of the herbivores are a rarity.

"This triceratops could easily be one of the most complete in the world," said Larson, according to the AP. "It only has to be 50 percent complete to be one of the top four most complete in the world."

The find should greatly advance the study of triceratops, Larson said.

"We have the opportunity to really rewrite the book on triceratops," he said.

A rancher who owns the land alerted the paleontologists to the find, Larson said. Larson and his 25-person team began the dig on May 9 at an area that was likely a subtropical flatland during the Late Cretaceous. It was an ideal environment for the triceratops, but also likely attracted a number of predators.

"Apparently, the triceratops was quite tasty and one of the favorite meals of the T. rex," he said.

Anne Schulp a paleontologist at Naturalis Biodiversity Center reemphasized the rarity of the find.

"You normally never find more than oneTriceratopsin any one place," she said in a statement. "But here we have - and these examples are also of different ages. A truly exciting find."