RE: Ceratopsian Frills

["Andrew A. Farke" <andyfarke@hotmail.com>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-dinosaur@usc.edu [mailto:owner-dinosaur@usc.edu] On Behalf Of
> Richard W. Travsky
> Sent: Sunday, April 25, 2004 7:26 PM
> To: dinosaur@usc.edu
> Subject: Ceratopsian Frills

<snip>
> It occurs to me that a ceratopsian frill employed actively could also be
> effective. Given the weight of a frill and the strong neck muscles needed
> to hold and move the head around, a sudden jerk back could deliver
> considerable force against a predator going for the neck.

Hmm. . .an interesting thought. Very possible in Triceratops, which has a
nice heavy frill. This might be a little dicier in animals such as
Torosaurus, which have a very thin frill. Maybe I'll have to do some frill
strength calculations among everything else these days!

Andy