Maiasaura had a bill like a duck, ran in herds like buffalo and cared for its young like birds. This intelligent dinosaur used its sharp beak to cut pieces of plants from their stems. If the creature didn't eat the foliage itself, it took the food back to a mass nesting area where the creature fed the plants to its young.
Ducky: Maiasaura's mouth was shaped like a broad bill-similar to a duck's-and sharpened around the edges. This helped the big plant-eater snip leaves and branches from the plants it ate. Small teeth in the back of the creature's mouth chewed them up.
Stand Up: This dino's legs were thick with muscle to support its three-ton body. Maiasaura walked on all fours, but its hind legs were strong enough to allow it to rear up for short periods to grab food from tall trees or to scare off predators.
Family Thing[]
The first maiasuara fossils discovered were babies, like this one.
Dinosaur scientists have found fossilized maiasaura nests, which show that the prehistoric reptiles were great parents. Many dinos simply laid their eggs and left, but this one was intelligent enough to stand guard over its eggs, and even brought food to its young after they hatched, like birds do today. Such care ensured that most maiasaura babies survived at least to young adulthood. Plus, these huge beasts nested together in large enough numbers to discourage predators and egg-thieves from attacking the nesting areas.
Stay Together: This dino roamed what's now the American West in huge herds, much like bison did millions of years later. More than 10,000 maiasaura fossils were once found in one huge pit-all had died together when a nearby volcano erupted.
Coverup: Maiasaura covered the eggs in its nest with rotting vegetation. This helped keep the eggs warm and moist so they developed well, and provided the young with a bit of food when they hatched.
Timeline[]
Maiasaura lived 80 to 75 million years ago, during the Cretaceous Period.
Trading Card[]
Trivia[]
- The maiasaura is featured on several Monster Mania cards:
- It is first featured in Fossil Finders on Monster Mania 56.
- The skull used for the game is also featured on the back of the knowledge card.
- It is then used as part of the example creature in Build-A-Beast on Monster Mania 60.
- It is first featured in Fossil Finders on Monster Mania 56.