Dinosaurs roamed around the Earth for about 162 million years, i.e., millions of years before human beings arrived on the Earth. In this post, we bring many interesting facts about dinosaurs for kids. Dinosaurs lived in the Mesozoic Era, divided into three periods: Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods. They were the dominant species of the animal world by the beginning of the Jurassic period, and then they became extinct about 66 million years ago. Your kids might be asking you questions like how many dinosaurs were there, what they were called, what happened to them, etc. Read this post as we bring fascinating information about the dinosaurs to keep your children entertained and engaged.
Origin Of The Word “Dinosaur” And What it means?
Sir Richard Owen, a biologist from England, coined the term “dinosaur.” He used this word to classify a large group of animals, “Dinosauria” (1). The word ’Dinosaur’ was derived from the Greek “deinos,” which means “big and terrible” and “sauros” means “lizard.” Although researchers called them “Big terrible lizards,” dinosaurs are not lizards.
Evolution Of A Dinosaur
Around 350 million years ago, due to natural phenomena, reptiles survived without water. As their bodies evolved, the reptiles changed to the four-legged amphibians. The early reptiles were lizards, snakes, turtles, ancestor mammals, and plesiosaurs. It is believed that some of these reptiles later evolved into dinosaurs called “Archosaurs” and “Avemetatarsalians.”
How Many Types Of Dinosaurs Existed?
More than 700 dinosaur species have been discovered so far. Paleontologists hope to discover more species from the excavation sites. Megalosaurus, a giant carnivore, roamed the Earth about 169 million years ago. Megalosaurus was nine meters long and three meters tall. One of the first dinosaur fossils ever discovered was of the Megalosaurus. Reverend William Buckland, a geologist, was the first to study the fossil of the dinosaur in 1824 and named it Megalosaurus All dinosaurs descended from reptiles called ’Archosaurs.’ They came in different shapes and sizes. British paleontologist Harry Seeley classified dinosaurs into two categories – Ornithischia and Saurischia – based on their hip structure. The top three Saurischian dinosaurs are T-Rex, Allosaurus, and Oviraptor. They were the precursor to the birds, which evolved from the avian dinosaur, who were the only ones to survive the extinction event.
Extinction Of Dinosaurs
For more than 140 million years, the dominance of dinosaurs was unchallenged except by other dinosaurs. But all that changed overnight when the dinosaurs were wiped out. The reason for their extinction is not known. But the most accepted theory is that an asteroid strike that occurred 66 million years ago led to their extinction. Keep reading to know more about how the dinosaurs lived and thrived before nature struck them out.
Interesting Facts About Dinosaurs For Kids
Amazing Dinosaur Facts
Strange Dinosaur Facts
Movie Facts about Dinosaurs
Best Movies on Dinosaurs
Some dinosaur movies you could watch with your children are:
Age of Dinosaurs Land of the Lost Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (5) King Kong Jurassic Park (All Parts) The Lost World Good Dinosaur 100 Million BC The Land Before Time Camosaur
