Corythosaurus, whose name means "helmet lizard," was a duck-billed dinosaur that lived in North America during the Late Cretaceous, around 77 million years ago. Its most famous feature was the tall, hollow crest on its head, which looked like a Corinthian soldier's helmet and was likely used both for display and for producing loud, low-pitched calls. Like other hadrosaurs it was a peaceful plant-eater, using hundreds of tightly packed teeth to grind up tough leaves, twigs, and pine needles. Reaching about nine meters long and weighing several tons, it could walk on all fours while grazing but rose onto its hind legs to run from predators. Hundreds of well-preserved skeletons have been found in Alberta, Canada, some still bearing fossilized skin impressions, making Corythosaurus one of the best-known dinosaurs in the world.
