Balancing Papers on Horns

Ceratosaurus is the star of a couple of books (I am a fan of Charles Gilmore's description of North American carnivores from 1920). More importantly, Ceratosaurus is the star of a large number of scientific studies. The large volume of work stems in part from some of the interesting ways in which the fossils have been discovered. These studies include unique discoveries that were somewhat unexpected in places like Portugal and Africa. Possibly the largest concentration of Ceratosaurus skeletons that are known and have been recovered and prepared come from the states of Colorado and Utah; there are a number of other finds in Wyoming and other areas of the North American West as well. Reading the numerous descriptions of new finds could take one all day, but it may be worth it. I offer here a few older readings from Hay, Marsh, and Madsen that describe new finds and restorations of Ceratosaurus skeletons. Other options worth reading include Henderson's ecological study centered on skull and tooth morphology and Bakker and Bir's contribution to the book Feathered Dragons edited by Currie, et al.; a chapter titled "Dinosaur crime scene investigations: theropod behavior at Como Bluff, Wyoming, and the evolution of birdness". Though not always a popular character, their chapter is well written and an interesting interpretation of theropod feeding locations and the clues left behind.