An Introduction to Dinosaurs

What is a dinosaur? When and where did dinosaurs live? And why are they called "dinosaurs" in the first place? Find the answers to these questions and more in these introductory articles.

  • Recently extinct animals
    100 Recently Extinct Animals
  • Glyptodon skeleten in glass display case
    Overview of the Pliocene Epoch
  • fossil of dinosaur egg embryo
    10 Facts About Dinosaur Eggs
  • Megalodon
    The Neogene Period
  • An Oviraptor robs a nest
    The 15 Main Dinosaur Types
  • poebrotherium
    Overview of the Oligocene Epoch
  • Gastornis
    Prehistoric Life During the Paleogene Period
  • Anatotitan
    The 10 Strangest Dinosaur Names
  • HK TST Science Museum Bones exhibit 02 恐龍 dinosaur
    Why Dinosaurs Were So Big
  • Dodo Skeleton next to taxidermy version
    10 Facts About the Dodo Bird
  • Saber-toothed tiger drawing
    Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Florida
  • The American cheetah
    Learn About 10 Recently Extinct Tigers and Lions
  • Woolly Mammoths and Woolly Rhinos in a Prehistoric Landscape
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Arizona
  • Deinosuchus skeleton
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Georgia
  • Illustration of five different dinosaurs and their sizes
    The 20 Biggest Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Reptiles
  • Amargasaurus
    The Top 10 Weird Dinosaurs
  • <i>T. rex</i> was one of the smarter dinosaurs in existence
    The 10 Smartest Dinosaurs of the Mesozoic Era
  • Digital illustration of the dinosaur, Irritator.
    The 10 Most Important Facts About Dinosaurs
  • andreolepis
    The Silurian Period (443-416 Million Years Ago)
  • Sail-Backed Carnivorous Dimetrodons During Earths Permian Period
    Prehistoric Life During the Permian Period
  • Anchisaurus 3D Render
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Massachusetts
  • acanthostega drawing
    Prehistoric Life During the Devonian Period
  • Smilodon Saber-Tooth Tiger
    Prehistoric Life During the Pleistocene Epoch
  • postosuchus
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of North Carolina
  • Ankylosaur dinosaur, artwork
    10 Important Dinosaurs That Roamed Across Australia and Antarctica
  • brontomerus
    How Scientists Estimate the Weight of Extinct Dinosaurs
  • Causes of extinction
    Top 10 Reasons Why Animals and Plants Go Extinct
  • saber-toothed tiger
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of South Carolina
  • Carnosaur dinosaur footprint from Culpepper, Virginia
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Virginia
  • columbian mammoth
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Washington
  • olorotitan
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Russia
  • Eurypterus explores the sea floor with Dunkleosteus lurking in the background, a typical scene from the mid Ordovician to late Permian, 460 to 248 million years ago
    The Ordovician Period (488-443 Million Years Ago)
  • apatosaurus at a museum
    All About Apatosaurus
  • Ornithomimus dinosaurs and Panoplosaurus grazing along a stream
    What Did Dinosaurs Really Look Like?
  • Dinosaurs Extinction
    Were Dinosaurs Warm-Blooded?
  • Brontotherium
    Prehistoric Life During the Eocene Epoch
  • Stegosaurus
    How Smart Were Dinosaurs?
  • Digital illustration of T-Rex.
    Top 10 Most Popular Dinosaurs
  • Interior of a rainforest, Malaysia.
    Where Dinosaurs Lived
  • Illustration of Lambeosaurus family - stock illustration
    How Did Dinosaurs Raise Their Families?
  • Dinosaurs at a watering hole
    What Is the Scientific Definition of a Dinosaur, According to Experts?
  • Isotelus maximus Ohio
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Ohio
  • Illustration of Hadrosaurus
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Tennessee
  • Hypsibema model
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Missouri
  • sillosuchus skeleton
    How Did Dinosaurs Evolve?
  • Basilosaurus skull
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Alabama
  • A skull of Protoceratops, showing the large crest some paleontologists think was typical of males (Luis Sanchez)
    How Male Dinosaurs Differed From Female Dinosaurs
  • mastodon
    Overview of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Kentucky
  • Basilosaurus skeleton
    4 Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Louisiana
  • tullimonstrum
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Illinois
  • Hipparion
    The Miocene Epoch (23-5 Million Years Ago)
  • nene goose in hawaii
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Hawaii
  • apatosaurus
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Arkansas
  • mastodon
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Indiana
  • Ornithomimus
    How Fast Could Dinosaurs Run?
  • Fossil of Ophthalmosaurus, an extinct ichthyosaur- Senckenberg Museum of Frankfurt
    Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals That Roamed Nevada
  • Basilosaurus
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of Mississippi
  • Greererpeton drawing
    The Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals of West Virginia
  • <i>Amphibamus grandiceps</i>, a dissorophoid temnospondyl from the late Carboniferous of Illinois in the water
    The Carboniferous Period (350-300 Million Years Ago)
  • Artwork depicting extinction of dinosaurs
    How Long Did Dinosaurs Live?
  • Tyrannosaurus fossils reconstructed
    How Do Creationists Explain Dinosaurs?
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