Maiasaura peeblesorum

Description

This dinosaur was named “The Good Mother” because there is evidence that she looked after her nest of eggs very well. And her fossil was found among a whole area of nests, all clustered together, like a mass incubation ground. She was excavated in Montana during 1979.Big Mama weighed in at around four tons, with a nose to tail tip measurement of some 30 feet, and stood at least eight feet at the shoulder. Montana must have been a very rich environment at the time, rich enough to support hundreds of duck-billed plant eaters like Maiasaura, with huge appetites, and side teeth that could process enormous amounts of plant material.According to the fossil specialists who found her, the four-footed Maiasura species was unlikely to have been a lumbering colossus in the style of Diplodocus. Anatomical studies suggest she may have moved along at 25 miles an hour. And one may imagine how a Maiasaura herd may have patrolled the perimeter of the hatchery, as a formidable defense and protection system for their precious eggs.

Habitat

Fossil Distribution

Maiasaura was a herbivore. It lived in the Cretaceous period and inhabited North America. Its fossils have been found in places such as Montana.

Taxonomy

Fun Facts