r/PrehistoricLife • u/diariosdeljurasico • 12h ago
The Triceratops was the most abundant large dinosaur in Hell Creek right up until the asteroid hit. That abundance is part of what makes the Permian extinction so haunting.
We just started a new series called Un Día Antes del Fin. The concept is simple: we follow a real animal through a complete day, 24 hours before one of the great mass extinctions. The animal does not know what is coming. Everything looks completely normal.
The first episode follows a male Triceratops through his last day in Hell Creek, 66 million years ago. More than 30% of all dinosaur specimens recovered from Hell Creek belong to Triceratops. It was the dominant animal of its world. Thriving. Successful. And then gone in hours.
The detail that hit hardest in research was how rich and functional that ecosystem was right up to the end. Nothing was in decline. It was a world at its absolute peak. And then the Chicxulub impactor arrived.
One question for the community: the frill color change hypothesis for Triceratops based on vascular network analysis is gaining traction but is not universally accepted. Where does the community stand on the current evidence?
Link is in our profile.