Stygimoloch (meaning "demon from the
Styx") is a
genus of
pachycephalosaurid dinosaur from the end of the
Cretaceous period, roughly 66 million years ago. It is currently known from the
Hell Creek Formation,
Ferris Formation, and
Lance Formation of the Western Interior (
United States), where it lived alongside
Tyrannosaurus and
Triceratops. The
type species,
S. spinifer (meaning "
thorny devil from the
Styx (river of death)"), was described by British
vertebrate paleontologist Peter Galton and German paleontologist
Hans-Dieter Sues of the
National Museum of Natural History in 1983.
Stygimoloch is characterized by clusters of spikes on the back of the skull, in which a long central horn is surrounded by 2-3 smaller hornlets, and a tall, narrow dome.
Dracorex has similar but shorter hornlets and lacks a dome, and has been interpreted as either a distinct species, or a juvenile or female of
Pachycephalosaurus or
Stygimoloch. It has also been proposed that
Stygimoloch represents partially grown individuals of
Pachycephalosaurus.