Archaeologists have uncovered what is believed to be the oldest dinosaur to ever exist in North America. And it's a very small dinosaur.

"Aquilops americanus" is a horned dinosaur roughly the size of the modern day rabbit. It lived in North America some 107 million years ago during the Early Cretaceous period.

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Horned dinosaurs or "neoceratopsians" were believed to have migrated to North America from Asia around 113 million to 105 million years ago. Paleontologists discovered parts of teeth, tail and a few bones after the skull was first discovered in 1997.

These new findings suggest the fossils of the Aquilops americanus existed much earlier than other horned dinosaurs in the North American continent. The triceratops also hails from the same family tree as this horned dinosaur but they walked on Earth some 40 million years after Aquilops americanus.

Aquilops americanus lived 20 million years earlier than triceratops and is currently the oldest known horned dinosaur. The name Aquilops americanus is derived from "American eagle face," which describes the head of the dinosaur that looked like modern raptors.

Researchers uncovered parts of a skull and the lower jaw of the dinosaur during an expedition in southern Montana funded by the National Geographic, said Richard Cifelli, curator of vertebrate paleontology from the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, and lead author of the study.

The study revealed that A. americanus weighed around 3.5 pounds and measured two feet across its body. Aquilops, however, didn't have any horns or a bony neck frill like triceratops.

According to Andrew Farke, paleontologist and curator from the Alf Museum, the Aquilops' fossil was the first to confirm horned dinosaurs once roamed North America. The  newest Aquilops' fossils show they're more similar to their Asian ancestors compared to other American species.

This finding also provides essential clues about the migration of dinosaurs from Asia across the Pacific Ocean.

This study was published in the online journal, PLOS One.

TagsOldest Horned Dinosaur in North America Found, horned dinosaur, Aquilops americanus, oldest north america horned dinosaur