1997 32¢ Corythosaurus
Issue Date: May 1, 1997
City: Grand Junction, CO
Printed By: Sterling Sommers for Ashton-Potter (USA) Ltd
Printing Method: Lithographed
Perforations: 11 x 11.1
Dinosaurs came in all shapes and sizes during their long evolutionary journey. In heads alone, there was huge diversity – many sporting unusual lumps, bumps, crests, and bony spikes. Corythosaurus (ko-RITH-uh-sawr-us) got his name from the helmet-like crest on his head. As a hadrosaur, he was a Late Cretaceous dinosaur, a group distinguished by duckbills and strangely decorated heads.
Corythosaurus was a mid-sized dinosaur, ranging from 18- to 33-feet long and weighing from 2 to 4 tons. Because he had a pebble-like, armorless skin, he herded with his own kind, relying on the keen eyes, ears, and sense of smell of the group for detecting danger. At the warning signal, the group burst into two-footed flight.
Like other hadrosaurs, Corythosaurus was a plant eater. And though his duckbill was toothless, he had lots of teeth – in fact, hadrosaurs had more teeth than any other dinosaur group. With their duckbills, they ingested twigs, leaves, and pine needles. As the vegetation moved toward the throat, as many as 2000 sharp, diamond-shaped teeth set in multiple rows along the back of their jaws ground the food, much like a modern vegetable grater. Because these teeth would frequently wear down, new ones continually emerged to replace them.