WHAT IS A DINOSAUR?

Dinosaur means “terrible lizard” which was first used by a British comparative anatomist Sir Richard Owen in 1842 when he coined the term “dinosauria.” The term is derived from the Greek word deinos meaning “terrible” or “fearsome” and saura meaning “lizard” or “reptile.”

Dinosaurs were large reptiles that lived on land not in the water, and they could not fly. Their legs were positioned under their bodies like columns rather than spread out, which allowed them to walk and run rather than sprawl.

Dinosaurs were an extremely varied group of animals. Some were carnivores (meat-eaters), but most were herbivores (plant-eaters). Some walked on two legs and some walked on four legs. Also dinosaurs came in many sizes; some were about 3 feet long and the largest could be 100 feet long. Finally, dinosaurs lived in many parts of Earth as their remains have been found in nearly every continent.