Stegosaurus' Boney Back
Stegosaurus had large plates sticking out of its back. In fact, Stegosaurus means covered lizard or roofed lizard. Stegosaurus' bony plates are a bit of a mystery. They were embedded in its back, but they were not attached to its bones. No one really knows how they were positioned. Did they stick up, flop over or have a mind of their own? The reason for the plates is also unknown. They were made of bone but were filled with tube-like tunnels. The plates probably helped control Stegosaurus's temperature (sort of like built-in air conditioning). They could have also been for protection or even a display for mating.
Stegosaurus' Boney BackCourtesy of Sergey Krasovskiy
Stegosaurus Is One Spikey Dude
As if Stegosaurus' spikey back wasn't enough, it had spikes up to four feet long on the end of its flexible tail. The number of tail spikes depended on the species of Stegosaurus. Stegosaurus ungulatis had eight spikes and Stegosaurus stenops had four spikes.
Simple Stegosaurus
If the size of its brain says anything about its intelligence, Stegosaurus would have been one dumb bunny. Stegosaurus had a tiny brain. It was only the size of a walnut. Considering that Stegosaurus grew up to 30 feet (9 m) long, that's not much brain power.
Stegosaurus' head is much smaller than their bodyCourtesy of Natural History Museum
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