Picture by Dalton

     Dinosaurs are a group of reptiles that have been around for a long time.Through their fossils, scientist have learned a lot about them.  They had legs under their bodies, instead of sticking out like today's lizards.Their knees and ankles were below their bodies.  They had strong legs that were able to carrry lots of weight and their skulls were designed for holding and tearing apart their prey.  Here are some examples of dinosaurs that have been discovered with the help of fossils.

Compsognathus

Compsognathus was the size of  a chicken. It was the smallest dinosaur that ate meat. Compsognathus had  two fingers  on each hand and three  toes on each foot.

Archaeopteryx

Archaeopteryx was the very first bird. It had real feathers that kept it warm. They also helped it glide through the air. But it was different from today’s birds. It had sharp teeth and wings with claws. It would glide from a tree to the ground. Then it used its claws to climb back into a tree.

Pterodactyls

Pterodactyls was the size of today’s pigeon. But its wings were much  bigger. They were made of a leathery web. Like birds it had light hollow bones. But fur covers its body instead of feathers.

To learn more about dinosaur fossils, visit this site:  http://www.sdnhm.org/kids/dinosaur/