PBDB Taxon

Basic info	Taxonomic history	Classification	Included Taxa
Morphology	Ecology and taphonomy	External Literature Search	Age range and collections

Ceratopsidae (ceratopsid)

Reptilia - Ceratopsidae

Taxonomy

Ceratopsidae was named by Marsh (1888). Its type is Ceratops. It was considered monophyletic by Sereno (2000).

It was corrected as Ceratopidae by Olshevsky and Ford (1994); it was considered a nomen dubium by Lull (1906).

It was assigned to Ornithopoda by Mansel-Pleydell (1902); to Orthopoda by Depéret (1896), Nopcsa (1901), Lambe (1905), Huene (1909), Lambe (1911); to Postpubici by Jaekel (1911); to Phytophagi by Jaekel (1914); to Predentata by von Zittel (1911), Gilmore (1919); to Dinosauria by Marsh (1888), Joleaud (1922); to Thyreophora by Nopcsa (1923), Nopcsa (1923), Nopcsa (1923), Huene (1927), Huene (1929); to Ceratopsoidae by Hay (1930); to Thyreophoroidea by Huene (1934); to Thyreophoroidea by Nopcsa (1928), Nopcsa (1929), Huene (1934); to Ceratopsia by Parks (1935); to Ponderopoda by Huene (1948), Huene (1959); to Ornithischia by Lapparent (1947), Madsen and Miller (1979); to Neoceratopia by Olshevsky and Ford (1994); to Ceratopsia by Marsh (1890), Marsh (1895), Marsh (1896), Hatcher et al. (1907), Matthew (1915), Gregory and Mook (1925), Russell (1930), Roxo (1937), Kuhn (1946), Huene (1950), Parsch (1963), Tatarinov (1964), Kuhn (1964), Estes (1964), Kuhn (1966), Romer (1966), Charig (1967), Swinton (1970), Thulborn (1971), Ostrom (1980), McIntosh (1981), McGinnis (1982), Sues and Galton (1982), Russell (1984), Maryanska and Osmólska (1985), Ostrom and Wellnhofer (1986), Bakker (1986), Carroll (1988), Nessov (1995); to Ceratopsomorpha by Wolfe and Kirkland (1998); to Coronosauria by Zheng et al. (2015); to Ceratopsoidea by Hay (1902), Zhao (1983), Norman (1984), Cooper (1985), Sereno (1986), Sereno (1997), Sereno (1998), Sereno (1999), Sereno (2000), Lambert et al. (2001), Makovicky (2001), You and Dodson (2003), Chinnery and Horner (2007), Farke et al. (2014), Morschhauser et al. (2019); to Neoceratopsia by Dodson and Currie (1990), Dodson (1990), Dodson (1997), Chinnery and Weishampel (1998), Penkalski and Dodson (1999), Peng et al. (2001), Chinnery (2004), Ryan and Evans (2005), Ryan (2007), Ryan et al. (2017), Dalman et al. (2018), Wilson et al. (2020); and to Ceratopsia by Tanoue et al. (2009), Brown and Henderson (2015), Rivera-Sylva et al. (2017), Fowler and Freedman Fowler (2020), Loewen et al. (2024).

Subtaxa

Agathaumas, Bison alticornis, Centrasaurinae, Centrosaurinae, Ceratopsinae, Ceratopsipes, Chasmosaurinae, Monocloniinae, Pachyrhinosaurinae, Polyonax, Triceratops galeus, Triceratops ingens, Triceratops maximus, Ugrosaurus

Year	Name and author
1872	Agathaumas Cope p. 2
1872	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope p. 2
1872	Agathaumas Cope pp. 481-483
1872	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope p. 483
1873	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope p. 1
1874	Polyonax Cope p. 10ff
1874	Polyonax mortuarius Cope p. 10ff
1874	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope p. 18
1874	Polyonax mortuarius Cope p. 25
1875	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope p. 54
1875	Polyonax mortuarius Cope p. 64
1875	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope p. 435
1875	Polyonax mortuarius Cope p. 448
1882	Agathaumas Dollo
1882	Agathaumas Marsh
1882	Agathaumas Sauvage p. 35
1883	Agathaumas Cope p. 99
1884	Agathaumas Dollo p. 298
1884	Agathaumas Marsh p. 69
1885	Agathaumas Marsh p. 764
1887	Bison alticornis Marsh
1888	Bison alticornis Cannon p. 143
1888	Ceratopsidae Marsh p. 478
1889	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope
1889	Agathaumidae Cope p. 16
1889	Polyonax alticornis Cope p. 290
1889	Agathaumas Cope p. 715
1889	Agathaumidae Cope p. 715
1889	Polyonax Cope p. 715–716
1889	Polyonax mortuarius Cope p. 715–716
1889	Polyonax Cope p. 906
1889	Ceratops alticornis Marsh pp. 174-175
1889	Triceratops galeus Marsh p. 174
1890	Ceratopsidae Marsh p. 425
1890	Agathaumas Zittel p. 751
1891	Agathaumidae Baur p. 450
1891	Agathaumas Cope p. 43
1891	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope p. 43
1891	Agathaumidae Cope p. 43
1891	Polyonax Cope p. 43
1892	Agathaumas Cope p. 758
1892	Agathaumas sylvestre Cope p. 758
1892	Agathaumas Seeley
1895	Agathaumas Marsh
1895	Ceratopsidae Marsh
1895	Polyonax Marsh
1896	Ceratopsidae Depéret p. 184
1896	Agathaumas sylvestre Hatcher p. 113
1896	Agathaumas Marsh p. 243
1896	Ceratopsidae Marsh p. 243
1896	Polyonax Marsh p. 243
1897	Ceratops alticornis Marsh p. 512
1897	Triceratops galeus Marsh p. 527
1898	Agathaumas Cope p. 70
1898	Agathaumas sylvestris Cope p. 70
1898	Agathaumidae Cope p. 70
1900	Ceratops alticornis Walcott p. 23
1901	Ceratopsidae Nopcsa p. 209
1901	Agathaumas Nopcsa p. 216
1901	Agathaumas sylvestris Nopcsa p. 216
1902	Agathaumas Hay p. 498
1902	Agathaumas mortuarius Hay p. 498
1902	Agathaumas sylvestris Hay p. 498
1902	Ceratopsidae Hay p. 498
1902	Triceratops galeus Hay p. 498
1902	Ceratops alticornis Hay p. 500
1902	Polyonax mortuarius Lambe p. 68
1902	Ceratopidae Mansel-Pleydell p. lxxv
1905	Ceratopsidae Lambe p. 49
1906	Triceratops alticornis Cannon p. 198
1906	Agathaumas Lull p. 144
1907	Ceratopsidae Hatcher et al. p. 10
1907	Agathaumas Hatcher et al. pp. 11, 104
1907	Agathaumas sylvestris Hatcher et al. pp. 105, 168
1907	Triceratops alticornis Hatcher et al. p. 170
1909	Ceratopsidae Huene p. 17
1909	Agathaumas Huene p. 18
1909	Polyonax Huene p. 18
1909	Agathaumas sylvestris Knowlton p. 270
1911	Ceratopsidae Jaekel p. 161
1911	Ceratopsidae Lambe p. 9
1911	Ceratopsidae von Zittel p. 295
1911	Agathaumas von Zittel p. 296
1913	Agathaumas Tornier p. 375
1914	Ceratopsidae Jaekel p. 197
1915	Triceratops ingens Lull
1915	Ceratopsidae Matthew p. 32
1919	Ceratopsidae Gilmore p. 64
1922	Ceratopsidae Joleaud p. 59
1923	Ceratopsidae Nopcsa p. 106
1925	Ceratopsidae Gregory and Mook p. 4
1927	Ceratopsidae Huene p. 257
1927	Agathaumas Huene p. 261
1927	Agathaumas sylvestris Huene p. 261
1927	Triceratops alticornis Huene p. 261
1927	Triceratops galeus Huene p. 261
1928	Ceratopsidae Nopcsa p. 185
1929	Ceratopsidae Huene p. 155
1929	Ceratopsidae Nopcsa p. 71
1930	Ceratopsidae Hay p. 220
1930	Triceratops alticornis Hay p. 228
1930	Triceratops galeus Hay p. 229
1930	Triceratops ingens Hay p. 229
1930	Agathaumas Hay p. 230
1930	Agathaumas sylvestris Hay p. 231
1930	Polyonax Hay p. 231
1930	Polyonax mortuarius Hay p. 231
1930	Agathaumas Russell p. 140
1930	Agathaumas sylvestris Russell p. 140
1930	Ceratopsidae Russell p. 140
1931	Triceratops alticornis Johnson p. 368
1931	Triceratops galeus Johnson p. 368
1933	Triceratops maximus Brown
1934	Ceratopsidae Huene p. 15
1935	Ceratopsidae Parks p. 185
1935	Triceratops alticornis Schlaikjer p. 57
1937	Ceratopsidae Roxo p. 65
1946	Ceratopsidae Kuhn p. 66
1947	Ceratopsidae Lapparent pp. 17-18
1948	Ceratopsidae Huene p. 95
1950	Ceratopsidae Huene p. 351
1956	Agathaumas Romer p. 638
1959	Ceratopsidae Huene p. 122
1963	Ceratopsidae Parsch p. 4
1964	Ceratopsidae Estes p. 145
1964	Agathaumas Kuhn p. 54
1964	Agathaumas silvestris Kuhn p. 54
1964	Ceratopsidae Kuhn p. 54
1964	Triceratops mortuarius Kuhn p. 59
1964	Triceratops alticornis Kuhn p. 60
1964	Triceratops galeus Kuhn p. 60
1964	Triceratops ingens Kuhn p. 60
1964	Triceratops maximus Kuhn p. 60
1964	Triceratops maximus Russell p. 17
1964	Ceratopsidae Tatarinov p. 581
1965	Triceratops alticornis Ostrom p. 39
1965	Triceratops galeus Ostrom p. 39
1965	Triceratops maximus Ostrom p. 39
1966	Ceratopsidae Kuhn p. 106
1966	Ceratopsidae Romer p. 371
1967	Ceratopsidae Charig p. 717
1970	Ceratopsidae Swinton p. 254
1971	Ceratopsidae Thulborn pp. 77-78 fig. 4
1979	Ceratopsidae Madsen and Miller p. 5
1980	Ceratopsidae Ostrom p. 23
1981	Ceratopsidae McIntosh p. 41
1982	Ceratopsidae McGinnis p. 96
1982	Ceratopsidae Sues and Galton p. 189
1983	Ceratopsidae Zhao p. 300
1984	Ceratopsidae Norman p. 160 fig. 2
1984	Ceratopsidae Russell p. 29
1985	Agathaumas Breithaupt p. 170
1985	Agathaumas sylvestris Breithaupt p. 170
1985	Ceratopsidae Cooper pp. 292-293
1985	Ceratopsidae Maryanska and Osmólska pp. 143-144 fig. 1
1986	Ceratopsidae Bakker p. 461
1986	Ceratopsidae Ostrom and Wellnhofer p. 116
1986	Ceratopsidae Sereno
1987	Ugrosaurus CoBabe and Fastovsky p. 149 figs. 1-4
1987	Ugrosaurus olsoni CoBabe and Fastovsky p. 149
1988	Ceratopsidae Carroll
1990	Ceratopsidae Dodson p. 578
1990	Ceratopsidae Dodson and Currie p. 611
1994	Ceratopidae Olshevsky and Ford
1995	Ceratopsidae Nessov p. 54
1997	Ceratopsidae Dodson pp. 473, 475–476
1997	Ceratopsidae Sereno p. 443
1998	Ceratopsidae Chinnery and Weishampel pp. 578-579 fig. 10
1998	Ceratopsidae Sereno p. 62
1998	Ceratopsidae Wolfe and Kirkland p. 307 fig. 5
1999	Ceratopsidae Penkalski and Dodson
1999	Ceratopsidae Sereno p. 2138 fig. 2
2000	Ceratopsidae Sereno p. 482
2001	Ceratopsidae Lambert et al. p. 18
2001	Ceratopsidae Makovicky p. 254 fig. 18.3
2001	Ceratopsidae Peng et al. p. 35
2003	Ceratopsidae You and Dodson
2004	Ceratopsidae Chinnery pp. 584-585 fig. 9
2005	Ceratopsidae Ryan and Evans p. 323
2007	Ceratopsidae Chinnery and Horner p. 638 fig. 6
2007	Ceratopsidae Ryan p. 391 fig. 12
2009	Ceratopsidae Tanoue et al. p. 426
2014	Ceratopsidae Farke et al.
2015	Ceratopsidae Brown and Henderson
2015	Ceratopsidae Zheng et al. p. 6 fig. 3
2017	Ceratopsidae Rivera-Sylva et al.
2017	Ceratopsidae Ryan et al.
2018	Ceratopsidae Dalman et al.
2019	Ceratopsidae Morschhauser et al. p. 129 fig. 10
2020	Ceratopsidae Fowler and Freedman Fowler
2020	Ceratopsidae Wilson et al.
2024	Ceratopsidae Loewen et al.

Diagnosis

Reference	Diagnosis
B. F. Nopcsa 1901	Intermaxillare fogatlan. Szarvak es legyezöalaku parietale; praeorbitalis nyilás nincsen. Os rostrale. Csigolyák platycoelek. Elsö lábak a hátsókkal majdnem egyformák. Pubis durványos. Femur harmadik trochanter nélkül. Ersö pánczél; paták. (Az összes eddig ismert fajok a krétából valók.) [Intermaxillary toothless. Horns and fan-shaped parietal; there is no preorbital opening. Rostral bone. Vertebrae platycoelous. Forelegs almost identical to hind legs. Pubis is rough. Femur without a third trochanter. Strong armor; hooves. (All species known so far are from Chalk.)]
B. F. Nopcsa 1928	skull with nuchal fringe and generally with horns; no armour on body.
F. v. Huene 1948	Two interorbital horns and another one on nose; double skull-roof with empty space between frontal and parietal; prefrontal bordering on nasal.
P. Dodson 1997	Skulls are large, and prominent horns are found over either the nose or the eyes, but usually not both (except Pachyrhinosaurus). The frill formed by the parietal and squamosal bones typically is about as long as or longer than the rest of the skull. The frill may be additionally ornamented with scallops, spikes, or hooks. Parietal fenestrae may be large (Chasmosaurus and Pentaceratops) or absent (Avaceratops and Triceratops). The opening for the nostril is large. The sharp beak is toothless, as in most protoceratopsids. Ceratopsids had dental batteries consisting of numerous interlocking teeth in which the roots of each tooth are split by the tooth beneath it in the replacement series. Also unique to ceratopsids is the vertical orientation of the plane of contact between the upper and lower tooth batteries, resulting in a peculiar slicing action. The occipital condyle by which the back of the skull contacts the vertebral column is spherical and in some cases as large as a small grapefruit (up to 115 mm in diameter). There are 10 fused sacral vertebrae in ceratopsids. The femur is always longer than the tibia, andthe ungual phalanges are blunt, rounded, and hoof-like.