Question 1

What is a dinosaur?

Accepted Answer

Dinosaurs were big reptiles that lived a long time ago, even before people existed. They came in all sorts of shapes and sizes, some were huge and others were as small as chickens.

Question 2

What did dinosaurs eat?

Accepted Answer

Some dinosaurs ate plants and others ate meat. The plant-eaters are called herbivores, and the meat-eaters are called carnivores.

Question 3

Why did dinosaurs have big teeth?

Accepted Answer

Some dinosaurs had big teeth to help them catch and eat other animals. Herbivorous dinosaurs had flat teeth to help them grind up plants.

Question 4

How did dinosaurs walk?

Accepted Answer

Dinosaurs walked on either two legs or four legs. Some could do both, like Tyrannosaurus rex, which ran on two legs but might have used its tiny arms for balance.

Question 5

Did dinosaurs have feathers?

Accepted Answer

Yes, some dinosaurs had feathers! Scientists think feathers helped keep them warm and might have helped them show off to other dinosaurs.

Question 6

Were all dinosaurs huge?

Accepted Answer

No, not all dinosaurs were huge. Some were very small, about the size of a chicken or a cat.

Question 7

How do we know what dinosaurs looked like?

Accepted Answer

Scientists study dinosaur bones, called fossils, that are found buried in the ground. By putting these bones together, they can guess what the dinosaurs might have looked like.

Question 8

What was the biggest dinosaur?

Accepted Answer

One of the biggest dinosaurs we know about is the Argentinosaurus. It was as long as three school buses and weighed more than ten elephants!

Question 9

How strong were dinosaur tails?

Accepted Answer

Some dinosaurs had very strong tails that they could use like a whip to defend themselves. Other dinosaurs used their tails to help them balance when running.

Question 10

What were dinosaur horns used for?

Accepted Answer

Dinosaurs with horns might have used them to fight other dinosaurs or to protect themselves. They could also have been for showing off to others or to look scary to enemies.

Question 11

Did dinosaurs have good eyesight?

Accepted Answer

Many predators, like the Tyrannosaurus rex, likely had good eyesight to help them spot prey. Plant-eaters might not have had as sharp vision but needed to see all around them for predators.

Question 12

How fast could dinosaurs run?

Accepted Answer

Some dinosaurs could run very fast, like the Velociraptor, which may have reached speeds similar to a racehorse. Other bigger, heavier dinosaurs moved more slowly.

Question 13

Did dinosaurs take care of their babies?

Accepted Answer

Yes, some dinosaurs took care of their babies by guarding their nests and feeding them. For example, the Maiasaura dinosaur was known for being a good parent.

Question 14

Why did some dinosaurs have long necks?

Accepted Answer

Dinosaurs with long necks, like Brachiosaurus, could reach high into trees to eat leaves and branches. Their long necks helped them get food that other dinosaurs couldn’t reach.

Question 15

What is a dinosaur fossil?

Accepted Answer

A dinosaur fossil is a part of a dinosaur, like a bone or tooth, that has turned into rock over millions of years. Fossils help scientists learn what dinosaurs were like and how they lived.

Question 16

Did dinosaurs live everywhere on Earth?

Accepted Answer

Yes, dinosaurs lived all over the world. Their fossils have been found on every continent, even in really cold places like Antarctica.

Question 17

What happened to the dinosaurs?

Accepted Answer

Most scientists think that a big rock from space, called an asteroid, hit the Earth. This caused big changes to the climate, making it hard for dinosaurs to survive.

Question 18

Were there flying dinosaurs?

Accepted Answer

There were flying reptiles called pterosaurs that lived at the same time as dinosaurs, but they weren’t exactly dinosaurs. However, some dinosaurs, like the Archaeopteryx, could fly and are related to birds today.

Question 19

Did dinosaurs fight each other?

Accepted Answer

Yes, some dinosaurs fought each other. They might have fought over food, territory, or mates, using claws, horns, or strong tails.

Question 20

Are birds related to dinosaurs?

Accepted Answer

Yes, birds are very closely related to dinosaurs. In fact, scientists think birds are the last living dinosaurs, and that's why some people call them 'living dinosaurs'.

The Anatomy of Dinosaurs - 20 FAQs Explained Simply