Extinct Animals

Protoceratops andrewsi was discovered in Mongolia in 1922 by an expedition from the American Museum of Natural History led by Roy Chapman Andrews. Its genus name means "first-horned face," and its species name was in honor of the expedition's leader.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Segnosaurus galbinensis, or "slow lizard from Galbin" (a region of the Gobi Desert), was first described by Mongolian paleontologist Altangerel Perle in 1979. It was an unusual saurischian that he classified in its own family, the Segnosauridae.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

The paleontological expeditions into the Turpan Basin in 1964-1966 turned up several interesting and unusual dinosaurs, ilncuding the Shanshanosaurus huoyanshanensis. Learn more about the Shanshanosaurus and other Late Cretaceous dinosaurs.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Styracosaurus was discovered in 1913 in the Belly River Formation of Alberta by Charles Sternberg. Lawrence Lambe named this animal Styracosaurus albertensis, which means "spiked reptile of Alberta," for its unusual neck frill.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

The first two Torosaurus specimens were a pair of skulls found in Wyoming in 1891 by John Bell Hatcher. They were described by Othniel Marsh later that same year. These two skulls were named Torosaurus latus and Torosaurus gladius.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

The Velociraptors in "Jurassic Park" were roughly the size of humans. In reality, they were about the size of an average turkey.

By Mark Mancini

Types of dinosaurs include the lizard-hipped dinosaurs and the bird-hipped divisions of dinosaurs. Both of these types of dinosaurs probably shared a common ancestor during the Middle Triassic. How else are these dinosaurs related?

Dinosaur bones are all we have to study what these animals looked like and how they lived. Some of the most important dinosaur bones that paleontologists study come from the skull. Why is the skull so important?

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Barapasaurus is named for a word meaning "big leg" in a local dialect in central India. This large dinosaur was a herbivore with large flat teeth that are ideal for cutting or crushing vegetation. What did this dinosaur look like?

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

One of the most unusual predators is that of Coelophysis. It was only slightly larger than a turkey and had a long slender tail and a mouth full of knife-edged teeth. What was this dinosaur's behavior like?

Perhaps no other beast has been more wildly mischaracterized in popular culture than the crested predator Dilophosaurus.

By Mark Mancini

Scutellosaurus was a very unusual dinosaur because it was a two-legged dinosaur that had armor. Most armored dinosaurs walked on all fours. Many scientists believe this dinosaur to be the ancestor of later larger armored dinosaurs.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

It isn't hard to imagine this scene even though dinosaurs haven't walked the earth for millions of years. Dinosaurs have captured our imaginations. These dinosaur articles have been written to lead you into the exciting world of dinosaur research and back to the "Age of Dinosaurs."

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

A full grown Allosaurus could be up to 34 feet long, stand 9 feet tall and weigh around 3 tons. This dino was a monster who, scientists suspect, would even eat his own kind.

By Mark Mancini

Apatosaurus was a huge sauropod from the Jurassic period. And there's a debate that's been raging for decades about whether its genus should cancel out the Brontosaurus entirely.

By Mark Mancini

Brachiosaurus has been portrayed in popular culture many times, but the representations of this mysterious dinosaur are largely based on another massive dino called Giraffatitan brancai.

By Mark Mancini

Diplodocus was an incredibly large dinosaur. It is the longest dinosaur known from complete skeletons. A fully grown adult could reach a length of 90 feet. Skeletons of this massive dinosaur have been found in North America.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Huayangosaurus was a type of stegosaur that lived in the Middle Jurassic in what is now China. The most prominent feature on this dinosaur is the rows of bony plating that ran down its back.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Supersaurus was a dinosaur that truly deserved its name. It measured about 100 feet in length and lived in North America. This dinosaur lived on a diet that consisted mostly of chutes and leaves from the tops of trees.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Acrocanthosaurus was a sauropod of spectacular proportions. In some ways it looked like many other meat-eating dinosaurs, but it had a sail along its back. See pictures and learn more about this dinosaur.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Carnotaurus (its name means "meat bull") is known from a single, nearly complete skeleton that had skin impressions over much of the skull and body. Read more about this South American dinosaur's unusual features.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

The 1964 discovery of Deinonychus in southern Montana was groundbreaking for many reasons, mostly because it helped prove that birds are direct descendants of dinosaurs.

By Mark Mancini

Discovered in 1966 in Niger is africa, this new dinosaur was first named and studied in 1976. Its name means "brave reptile." See why it is one of the most puzzling large ornithopods of the Cretaceous.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Tenontosaurus was a medium-size ornithopod dinosaur from Montana and Wyoming. Skeletons range in size from very small juveniles to almost 22-foot-long adults. Learn more about how this dinosaur lived and what it ate.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

Although it may be long extinct, this quirky bird continues to amaze scientist. The latest discovery? An awesome “musket ball” weapon located on the tip of its wing structure. Could our world once again include this big, old flightless pigeon?

By Jacob Silverman