Imagine the sound of a dinosaur roaring... Super loud, right? Wrong... It turns out the giant prehistoric creatures almost certainly didn't roar. You might be surprised to hear that some scientists believe they cooed, whistled and gargled instead. Strange but true.
And the parts of Jurassic Park when the dinos have their mouths wide open, sending rumbles through the jungle? Also unlikely to have happened in real life. Those in the know say it's far more plausible that non-avian dinosaurs communicated with their mouths closed by inflating the soft tissues of their throats.
If you found that interesting, keep scrolling. They're among the fun facts we've put together for anyone looking to add something extra to their database of dinosaur knowledge. Upvote your favorites and tell us in the comments below how many of these you already knew.
#1 It's Very Likely That Dinosaurs Didn't Roar
The sounds dinosaurs made were probably not the loud roars we often imagine. Instead of a larynx like lions, they had a syrinx, similar to birds and crocodiles. This means they likely produced softer noises, such as low rumbles, gargles, or even whistles and pops.
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25points
The Jurassic Park films have got it wrong. That's according to at least one expert. Julia Clarke is a palaeontologist at the University of Texas at Austin. And unlike many people who have a pure fascination with the great prehistoric creature, she dedicates her time to really delving into what they really looked and sounded like.
#2 Velociraptors Were Much Smaller And Less Scary Than You Imagine
Contrary to their depiction in Jurassic Park, actual Velociraptors were much smaller, roughly the size of a turkey, with skulls around six inches long. The fearsome, human-sized predators shown in the film more closely resemble another dinosaur, Deinonychus. Deinonychus was indeed a formidable creature, a fast, bipedal hunter equipped with deadly sickle-shaped claws capable of swift, fatal attacks.
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#3 Scientific Writing About Fossils Were First Published In Europe In 1677
In 1677, the first known scientific publication about a fossil emerged from Europe, detailing the discovery of a Megalosaurus thighbone. Megalosaurus was a carnivorous dinosaur that moved on its two back legs. This early scientific description marked an important step in understanding prehistoric life.
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21points
"A lot of the early reconstructions of dinosaurs have been influenced by what we associate with scary noises today from large mammalian predators like lions," Clarke told the BBC.
"In the Jurassic Park movies they did use some crocodilian vocalisations for the large dinosaurs, but on screen the dinosaurs have their mouths open like a lion roaring. They wouldn't have done that, especially not just before attacking or eating their prey," she added.
#4 Pterosaurs Are Not Seen As Dinosaurs
Although they lived alongside dinosaurs, Pterosaurs are classified separately by scientists as flying reptiles. These airborne creatures are distinct from dinosaurs, despite sharing the same prehistoric era. Therefore, while often associated with them, Pterosaurs do not fall under the "dinosaur" category.
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#5 There Were Many Other Animals Alive Millennia Before Dinosaurs Roamed
Long before dinosaurs first appeared, a diverse array of animal life, including frogs, turtles, sharks, clams, and various fish, already populated the Earth. These creatures existed for millennia prior to the era when dinosaurs began to roam. The planet, therefore, was home to many established animal groups well before the rise of the dinosaurs.
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#6 Deinonychus Was The Inspiration For "Raptors" On Jurassic Park
The name "Deinonychus," which translates to "terrible claw," actually refers to the dinosaur that served as the primary inspiration for the "raptors" in Jurassic Park. While the film used the name Velociraptor because it sounded more dramatic, the physical characteristics and size of the movie's creatures more closely matched those of Deinonychus. This highlights a creative choice made for cinematic appeal.
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Clarke explains that predators don't do that. If they did, they'd be giving their game away. "It would advertise to others nearby that you have got a meal, and it would warn their prey they are there," she says.
#7 The Oldest Dinosaur That We Know Of Lived As Far Back As 237 Million Years Ago
The earliest known dinosaur, a relatively small creature perhaps the size of a golden retriever, lived in Tanzania around 237 million years ago during the Triassic period; other early dinosaurs were even smaller, some akin to house cats. At that time, the world was largely dominated by crocodiles and other large reptilian animals. It wasn't until about 36 million years later, during the Jurassic period, that dinosaurs became the prevailing creatures.
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#8 Pterosaurs Were The First Beings Larger Than Bugs That Could Fly
Pterosaurs hold the distinction of being the first creatures larger than insects to achieve flight. Some of these ancient flying reptiles reached impressive sizes, with the largest having wingspans around 36 feet. This wingspan is comparable to that of a small modern airplane.
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#9 Dinosaur Were Relatively Social
Discoveries of nesting colonies, such as those of Maiasaura, indicate that not all dinosaurs were solitary creatures. This evidence points to some species exhibiting social behaviors. These findings suggest a more complex social structure for certain dinosaurs than previously thought.
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19points
#10 Birds Are In Fact Descendants Of Dinosaurs
The lineage of modern birds traces directly back to dinosaurs, from which they evolved around 150 million years ago in the Jurassic period. Contrary to some popular depictions, pterosaurs were not flying dinosaurs but a distinct group of flying reptiles. In fact, birds are the only type of dinosaur that ever developed the ability to fly.
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#11 Megalosaurus Was The First Ground-Dwelling Dinosaur To Be Published In Scientific Writing
A portion of a femur discovered in the 17th century resulted in Megalosaurus becoming the first ground-dwelling dinosaur to be documented in scientific writing. This particular fossil find marked an early step in the formal study of dinosaurs that lived on land.
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#12 The Word "Dinosaur" Was Only Recognised In 1841
The word "dinosaur," which translates to "Terrible Lizard," was first introduced in 1841. It was Sir Richard Owen who coined this term to describe these ancient reptiles. This new classification helped to define these creatures for scientific study.
18points
#13 Dinosaurs Were On Earth For Well Over 165 Million Years
Dinosaurs roamed the Earth for an extensive period, well over 165 million years. This is a remarkably long time, especially when compared to the approximately five to seven million years that humans have existed. The vast difference in these timelines underscores just how briefly humans have been present relative to the dinosaurs' long era.
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17points
#14 A T-Rex Could See Really Well
The Tyrannosaurus Rex was an exceptionally dangerous predator, possessing vision significantly sharper than that of humans and even falcons. These massive carnivores could also perceive a broader spectrum of colors, including ultraviolet, and had a keen sense of smell, allowing them to detect prey even if it stood still. Adding to their formidable capabilities, T-Rex were surprisingly fast, able to outpace top human sprinters.
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#15 Many Species Of Dinosaur Had The Ability To Swim
Evidence such as fossilized trackways showing dinosaurs entering water, with their footprints becoming lighter and eventually showing claw scrapes in the mud, suggests that many dinosaur species possessed swimming capabilities. Like other vertebrate animals, these ancient creatures could navigate aquatic environments. It's important to distinguish them from marine reptiles like Mosasaurs and Plesiosaurs, which were not dinosaurs, even though they lived in the water during the same era.
16points
#16 There Were Three Periods Defined By Dinosaurs
The era of dinosaurs is divided into three distinct periods: the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous. During the Jurassic period, long-necked sauropods emerged, and overall dinosaur diversity greatly increased. The subsequent Cretaceous period was characterized by the presence of massive carnivores, titanosaurs, and various ornithopods such as Lambeosaurus and Iguanodon. Earlier, in the Triassic period, the dinosaur landscape included large herbivores like Plateosaurus and smaller carnivores such as Coelophysis.
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#17 Not All Dinosaurs Were Alive During The Same Periods
The vast timeline of dinosaur existence, spanning over 165 million years, means that many iconic species never actually lived at the same time. For example, a T-Rex from 66 million years ago would have roamed landscapes containing the fossilized bones of earlier dinosaurs like Stegosaurus, which lived many millions of years prior. This chronological separation placed creatures like Dreadnoughtus and T-Rex in entirely different prehistoric eras, preventing them from ever meeting.
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#18 You Might Have Been Able To Out-Maneuver A T-Rex
While a T-Rex was incredibly fast, its ability to turn sharply was limited. The significant distance between its head and tail created a lot of angular momentum, making quick changes in direction difficult. Therefore, if you ever encountered one, attempting to out-maneuver it by changing your path frequently would have been a more effective survival tactic than trying to outrun it.
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#19 Troodon Were Among The Most Intelligent Dinosaurs
Due to its high encephalization quotient (EQ), which compares brain size to body size, Troodon is often considered one of the more intelligent dinosaurs. This feathered predator lived in North America during the Cretaceous period. However, Dr. Lacovara suggests that while paleontologists use EQ to estimate intelligence, it's an approximate measure, and dinosaurs essentially possessed the brainpower they needed to survive.
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14points
#20 Dinosaurs Didn't Give Us Oil
The vast oil reserves we utilize today actually originate from ancient marine plankton, not from dinosaurs. According to paleontologists, the sheer volume of petroleum found globally could not have been produced by the total mass of dinosaurs that ever existed. This understanding corrects a common misconception about the source of fossil fuels.
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13points