Dinosaurs Facts for Kids
Roar-some facts about dinosaurs
Microraptor was a small feathered dinosaur with flight feathers on both its arms and legs, giving it four wings. Scientists debate whether it could actually fly or merely glide from tree to tree.
When Iguanodon was first reconstructed by scientists in 1825, a large spike was mistakenly placed on its nose like a rhinoceros horn. It was later discovered that the spike was actually a sharp thumb claw used for defence.
Fossil trackways — preserved footprints left in ancient mud — show that some giant sauropod dinosaurs moved together in herds, with younger animals walking in the middle protected by the larger adults on the outside.
For decades, Deinocheirus was known only from a pair of enormous arms measuring 2.4 metres long, and scientists had no idea what the rest of the creature looked like. When a complete skeleton was finally found, it revealed a bizarre duck-billed giant with a humped back.
Psittacosaurus, a small plant-eating dinosaur, had long, stiff bristles growing from its tail, similar to a porcupine's quills. Exceptionally preserved fossils from China have even revealed the original colour patterning on its skin.
Despite how they are portrayed in films, large adult T. rex individuals probably could not run very fast — estimates suggest a top speed of around 20 kilometres per hour. Its massive bulk would have made faster running likely to break its own leg bones.
For many years, Brachiosaurus was depicted holding its neck straight up like a giraffe, but scientists now think it more likely held its neck at a roughly 45-degree angle most of the time. Fully vertical would have put extreme strain on its heart.
Carnotaurus was a large South American predator with two thick, pointed horns above its eyes — unlike any other known meat-eating dinosaur. Its name means 'meat-eating bull', and its tiny arms were even smaller than those of T. rex.
The majority of dinosaur species were herbivores, eating plants such as ferns, palms, and conifers. Plant-eating dinosaurs generally outnumbered meat-eating dinosaurs in any given ecosystem, just as today there are more plant eaters than predators.
Crocodiles, alligators, and their relatives survived the mass extinction that killed the non-avian dinosaurs 66 million years ago. The ancestors of modern crocodilians have barely changed in appearance for over 200 million years.