Like Loki: paleontologists from the United States have identified a new species of dinosaur

Paleontologists from the University of Utah announced the discovery of a new horned dinosaur. Judging by the size of the fossil, it had gigantic dimensions.

The crest of the dinosaur was decorated with long elongated horns, which were the longest among those found in known species. It was because of them that it got its name — Lokiceratops rangiformis. Paleontologists drew a parallel with Loki from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, who just had a helmet with long horns.

The remains found belonged to one individual. And there were enough of them for the researchers to assemble an almost complete skull of an extinct animal. Lokiceratops had horns unlike those of other dinosaurs: they were located on top of a large shield-like bone plate. Also, the animal was missing a horn on its nose, which is typical for dinosaurs of this family.

The remains were found back in 2019 in the Judith River Formation in Montana, a fossil deposit. Among other things, the bones of four more dinosaurs were then removed. However, after paleontologists recently began to reconstruct the skull of this ancient creature, they realized that they were dealing with something completely new.

According to scientists, the length of Lokiceratops was about 6.7 meters, and the weight was about 5 tons.

"Previously, paleontologists believed that a maximum of two species of horned dinosaurs could coexist in the same place and at the same time. Unbelievably, we have identified five individuals that live together," the scientists said.