Triceratops Horridus

Present Park Population: 27

Park Diet: Ferns, elephant feed, horse feed, cow feed, low shrubs, cycads, banana leaves, watermelons, pumpkins

Natural Diet: Ferns, low shrubs, cycads

Lifespan: 32 Years

Habitat: Open: Open areas with large amounts of food

Native Ecosystem: North America

Breeding Season: June and July

Gestation Period: Three months

Eggs Laid: Seven to eighteen

Hatching Time: Three to five weeks, depends on atmospheric moisture

Danger Level: Seven out of ten

Triceratops Horridus is the Cretaceous equivalent of bison: tough, sturdy, and short-tempered. Although they are normally peaceful, they will attack viciously once provoked. They form mixed herds with Torosaurus Latus and have extremely hostile reactions to Tyrannosaurs.

Tyrannosaurus had it's job cut out for trying to hunt these creatures. They had three foot long brow horns, quilled hindquarters, and a herding behavior that is similar to Africa's Cape buffalo. Once one was provoked, the entire herd would attack. They are less docile than Torosaurus and seem to love pumpkins and watermelons immensely.

The Triceratops genus was found all around North America and were one of the most successful herbivores of their time, with herds of them roaming all across the Cretaceous landscape. They normally stay away from Ankylosaurus, but could live with them if need be. Young Triceratops that had been abandoned by their herds would create groups that followed Ankylosaurus for protection.

Triceratops lived in small, but tightly knit groups of seven in the Cretaceous. They can grow to become twenty feet long and weigh seven tons. The are able to go surprisingly long without water and laid thick eggs to protect them from Troodon. The herd would stay in one area where the eggs would hatch, then leave once the eggs hatched. The young Triceratops would either follow or get left behind. Triceratops are born able to walk like wildebeest and horses, so almost always the young follow.

Triceratops are like elephants, with a hierarchy and matriarch. Unlike elephants though, adult male Trikes are allowed in the herd. The males are especially hostile to Tyrannosaurus, sometimes even killing Tyrannosaurus in a matter of minutes. Due to popular belief, Triceratops can not charge at attackers with it's horns. To charge at an attacker would lead to the horns being damaged, cracked, or even taken off. Instead, Triceratops will gore attackers from the sides or front on the belly.

Triceratops at one point viewed Gyrospheres as threats, as they were an unfamiliar object. Over time, the Triceratops got accustomed to them and even tolerated them, allowing them to be in their midst.

They are a peaceful, but short-tempered species. They are highly aggravated by loud objects, especially motorcycles and tolerate trucks and jeeps, but run away at the sight of helicopters above.

At Prehistoric Park, multiple herds are maintained, partly because of the of the low tolerance of too many other Trikes, partly to make the environment more real for the ankylosaurs, hadrosaurs, and Trikes themselves. As long as a Triceratops Horridus is not disturbed, it is safe to observe and hopefully Prehistoric Park's are here to stay in public viewing for generations to come.