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Description
This strange looking animal is Clydeoceratops, a 2m member of the basal Ceratopsian clade Hippogryphoidea. This group has a frustratingly poor fossil record before the Middle Eocene, but phylogenetic studies conducted using living taxa have confirmed that they are very basal members of Ceratopsia. Indeed, they have been found to nest between Yinlong and Chaoyangsaurus on the phylogenetic tree of Ceratopsia. Quite where such a group was hiding during the Cretaceous period has not yet been ascertained, but it has been suggested that the poorly known Late Cretaceous Micropachycephalosaurus was actually an ancestor of this lineage. The earliest members of Hippogryphoidea that are known from decent remains are the Hystricosaurids, which suddenly appear during the Early Eocene of North America at the Green River site. From incredibly well preserved fossils, we know that Hystricosaurids were small, basal Ceratopsians whose backs were covered in spiny quills and possessed strong forelimbs adapted to digging.

The limited fossil material attributed to Clydeoceratops conforms to this image and suggests a stocky herbivorous animal with a diet consisting of tough vegetation, roots and tubers. Semi-Intact remains have been found inside the remains of ancient burrows, indicating that these animals may have lived in communal burrows to escape from predators. Perhaps a good analogue for these digging herbivores would be the wombats from OE Australia. During the Middle Oligocene, Hystricosaurids or their close relatives would find their way to Asia, where the Hippogryphoideans would undergo a rapid burst of evolution. But that is a tale best left for another time.

Description
This strange looking animal is Clydeoceratops, a 2m member of the basal Ceratopsian clade Hippogryphoidea. This group has a frustratingly poor fossil record before the Middle Eocene, but phylogenetic studies conducted using living taxa have confirmed that they are very basal members of Ceratopsia. Indeed, they have been found to nest between Yinlong and Chaoyangsaurus on the phylogenetic tree of Ceratopsia. Quite where such a group was hiding during the Cretaceous period has not yet been ascertained, but it has been suggested that the poorly known Late Cretaceous Micropachycephalosaurus was actually an ancestor of this lineage. The earliest members of Hippogryphoidea that are known from decent remains are the Hystricosaurids, which suddenly appear during the Early Eocene of North America at the Green River site. From incredibly well preserved fossils, we know that Hystricosaurids were small, basal Ceratopsians whose backs were covered in spiny quills and possessed strong forelimbs adapted to digging.

The limited fossil material attributed to Clydeoceratops conforms to this image and suggests a stocky herbivorous animal with a diet consisting of tough vegetation, roots and tubers. Semi-Intact remains have been found inside the remains of ancient burrows, indicating that these animals may have lived in communal burrows to escape from predators. Perhaps a good analogue for these digging herbivores would be the wombats from OE Australia. During the Middle Oligocene, Hystricosaurids or their close relatives would find their way to Asia, where the Hippogryphoideans would undergo a rapid burst of evolution. But that is a tale best left for another time.