New Dinosaur Species Nasutoceratops 'Completely Blew Us Away,' Researchers Say

A new species of triceratops-like dinosaur has been described from fossil records unearthed in Utah. The creature had long horns curved like a fighting bull and a pronounced beak. Scientists named the new species Nasutoceratops titusi, which, fittingly, means big-nosed horn-face.

Despite its enlarged snout, the Nasutoceratops is not believed to have had an enhanced sense for smell, but its physical characteristics have enthralled paleontologists.

"The horns are by far the absolute largest of any member of its group of dinosaurs - they curve sideways and forwards," Mark Loewen, from the University of Utah and Natural History Museum of Utah, told BBC News.

"In addition it has the biggest nose of its group too."

Loewen said that the Nasutoceratops had features "outside of the norm" for this group of dinosaurs, the ceratopsids, most of which had huge heads and small horn over the nose and a horn over each eye; and many, like triceratops, had an ornate bone frill that fanned out over the base of the neck.

The Nasutoceratops' extremely long, curved horns over the eyes and comparatively simple bone frill sets the species apart from its brethren. The dinosaur was bulky, too, with an estimated weight of 2.5 metric tons.

"This dinosaur just completely blew us away," Loewen said.

Scott Sampson, co-author of the research on Nasutoceratops and paleontologist at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, suspects the creatures slowly lumbered across the land, wandering in herds for protection.

Sampson told National Geographic that Nasutoceratops likely used its impressive headgear to compete for mates, locking its curved horns with other males to assert dominance and sending a "don't mess with me because I'm bigger than you" message, Sampson said.

The creature was unearthed in a desert that once formed part of a continent called Laramidia - the area has proved to be a cache of dinosaur fossils. Nasutoceratops was found close to other kinds of horned dinosaurs and duck-billed hardosaurs, the BBC reported, which suggests that Nasutoceratops and the other creatures were able to co-exist.

But how the animals lived among each other in a competitive environment is still a mystery.

"We aren't really sure how you can support all of these animals, but you do find them all in the rock at the same time."

Sampson and his colleagues' research is published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.