Dinosaurs Facts for Kids
Roar-some facts about dinosaurs
The titanosaur Patagotitan was about 37 metres long — that is roughly the length of four double-decker buses placed end to end.
The smallest dinosaur footprint ever found was roughly the size of a one-penny coin, left by a tiny hatchling in South Korea.
By studying pigment-carrying structures preserved in fossils, scientists have discovered that some feathered dinosaurs had vivid colours including reddish-brown, black, and iridescent sheens.
Triceratops horns changed shape as they grew up. Young Triceratops had short, stubby horns that curved backwards, which straightened and lengthened with age.
Some sauropod footprints were so big that when they filled with water, small animals used them as tiny ponds!
The first recognised dinosaur eggs were discovered in the Gobi Desert in 1923 during an expedition by the American Museum of Natural History.
Recent studies suggest that an adult T. rex could only walk at about 4.5 kilometres per hour — slower than a brisk human jog — because running would have broken its leg bones.
T. rex replaced its teeth throughout its life. A single tooth could be replaced roughly every two years, so it always had sharp teeth ready.
Giant sauropods likely had a system of air sacs connected to their lungs, similar to modern birds, which made their massive bodies lighter and helped them breathe more efficiently.
Stegosaurus went extinct about 80 million years before T. rex even existed. In fact, we live closer in time to T. rex than Stegosaurus did!