Interactions
The
Stegosaurus’s lack of agility, because of its
large, lumbering body, did not provide for protection. The slow growth
of the dinosaur through its developmental stages suggests that
the plates and spikes evolved for defensive reasons on the
dinosaur. The Stegosaurus also shared its habitat with
other organisms. The herbivore Camptosaurus was one of
these dinosaurs roaming the same grounds as the Stegosaurus
(Redelstorff and Sander 2009). The dinosaurs also interacted with land animals that roamed in the
drier parts of the flood plain, like the Camptosaurus
(Foster 2013). According to fossil evidence, shrew-like
mammals, mollusks (like this common
land snail), insects, lizards (like the
Komodo Dragon or
Bearded Dragon), and frogs (like the
Green Frog) have been suggested to have lived among the
Stegosaurus as well. (Matthews 2003). These types of
organisms would have competed with this dinosaur for food and
land space.
On the other hand, the Stegosaurus also shared its habitat with predators. Stegosaurus evolved some adaptations to protect itself from predators. They used their tail spikes as a defensive mechanism against predators such as Allosaurus, Ceratosaurus, Torvosaurus, Marshosaurus, and Stokesosaurus (Foster 2007). It has been suggested that their back plates, on the other hand, were used for thermoregulation and mating display. Hayashi and his group suggest that the larger plates gave an increased advantage for the dinosaur to be able to protect and defend itself among its predators (Hayashi 2010). The most vulnerable were the young Stegosaurs who could easily fall prey to bigger theropods (Foster 2007). Although the Stegosaurus had predators, it also had prey (Check out its Nutrition).
Where did the Stegosaurus fit into the food chain?
The Stegosaurus happened to be the largest herbivorian dinosaur that was not a nonsauropod living in the Morrision Formation (Foster 2007). This means that the Stegosaurus was closer to the top of food chain due to size, but there were a few carnivorous dinosaurs above it as well.
Now, check out some interesting Stegosaurus Facts.
References
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