A new study found the gender of Stegosaurus dinosaur can be distinguished by the bony plates on its back. This plate is the large, bony disc positioned the dinosaur's neck, back and tail in two staggered rows.

Evan Saitta, the author of this analysis, said anatomical differences of individual plates between males and females is a concept known as sexual dimorphism. Analyzing the 150 million year-old remains of these dinosaur species, shows there are wide plates and tall plates.

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Saitta started this study in his senior year at Princeton University as part of his thesis. He's a paleobiology graduate at University of Bristol in United Kingdom.

Saitta said the differences of the plates of Stegosaurus mjosi is the most convincing evidence they have so far to prove sexual dimorphism in a dinosaur.

Saitta started studying Stegosaurus fossils back in 2009 and visited the Judith River Dinosaur Institute (JRDI) in Montana. This institute is the only graveyard for dinosaurs buried together of the same period.

Saitta has seen multiple Stegosaurus fossils here and recognized different dimensions of the dinosaur's plates. He wondered if it can be a sign of sexual dimorphism in dinosaurs.

He took CT scans and measurements of 10 plates of Stegosaurus from the Montana quarry and added 30 more plates from his previous analysis. He then looked for other explanation for the plate inequalities, including age and different species.

"We have two distinct varieties of plates, and we don't see intermediates," Saitta stated.

The findings suggest females may have tall plates they used as prickly deterrent against their predators while males don't have to use tall plates as they had other deadly weapons.

TagsResearchers Reveal How to Identify the Gender of Stegosaurus Dinosaur, Stegosaurus, Dinosaur era, dinosaur gender, boy or girl Stegosaurus, stegosaurus plates