by Mey and Grace
Ever have one of those times when you’re in bed with your special someone and you find yourself at a loss for words? Well, as everyone knows, nothing makes for better pillow talk than dinosaur facts. Here you go, and you’re welcome.
![The archeopteryx, which may or may not be one of the earliest birds (it's complicated). copyright Stacey Burgess](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/archeopteryx-S.jpg?resize=512%2C384)
The archeopteryx, which may or may not be one of the earliest birds (it’s complicated). copyright Stacey Burgess
1. Modern day birds are actually dinosaurs! In fact, a T-Rex is more closely related to a turkey than a stegosaurus.
![via xkcd](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/birds_and_dinosaurs.jpg?resize=320%2C571)
via xkcd
2. That’s because there were two main groups of dinosaurs: saurischian (lizard hipped) and ornithischian (bird hipped), and modern birds evolved from the saurischian group, which includes the T-Rex, and are evolutionarily closer than saurischian and ornithischian dinosaurs.
![What even is that?!?! (It's a Quetzalcoatlus) via about.dinosaurs.com](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/quetzalcoatlusWC3.jpg?resize=512%2C389)
What even is that?!?! (It’s a Quetzalcoatlus) via about.dinosaurs.com
3. Even though modern birds are dinosaurs, flying reptiles (like Pterodactyls and the ridiculously awesome Quetzalcoatlus) that lived in the time of the dinosaurs were not dinosaurs.
![Liopleurodon via carnivoraforum](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Liopleurodon.jpg?resize=512%2C384)
Liopleurodon via carnivoraforum
4. Neither were aquatic reptiles like the Plesiosaur or Liopleurodon.
![via fossilmuseum.net](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Dimetrodon.jpg?resize=512%2C384)
via fossilmuseum.net
5. Neither were Dimetrodons. Dinosaur refers to a specific set of land-dwelling reptiles who couldn’t fly and had a specific type of hip bone.
6. The Brontosaurus isn’t a real dinosaur at all. It’s just what happened when people accidentally put the skull of one sauropod on the body of another (also when people were being jerks and fighting to quickly “discover” as many new dinosaurs as they could).
![via Bookbyte Blog](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/jp.jpg?resize=633%2C337)
via Bookbyte Blog
7. It’s possible that the Triceratops didn’t exist either! Although there’s still a lot of debate going on, some paleontologists think that Triceratops skeletons are just young Torosauruses.
8. The Therizinasaurus had the longest claws of any dinosaur, which grew to be about three feet long.
![via The News](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Broken-tooth-dino-tail-proves-Tyrannosaurus-Rex-predator_7-16-2013_109535_l.jpg?resize=615%2C340)
via The News
9. T-Rex had the biggest teeth of any carnivorous dinosaur at 12 inches long.
10. Velociraptors in real life weren’t very much like the ones in Jurassic Park at all. In reality, they were only a few feet tall, weighed about thirty pounds and where covered in feathers. So that annoying kid is pretty much right, except instead of six-foot turkeys, they were more like three-foot turkeys.
![via Discovery News](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/sinosauropteryx-660.jpg?resize=640%2C419)
via Discovery News
11. Actually, a lot of dinosaurs were likely covered in feathers or protofeathers (which were basically short fuzzy feathers).
![via wikipedia](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/The_Childrens_Museum_of_Indianapolis_-_Dracorex_skeletal_reconstruction.jpg?resize=512%2C341)
via wikipedia
12. There’s a dinosaur named for the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (Dracorex hogwartsia, which means “Dragon King of Hogwarts”).
13. There’s evidence that suggests that Tyrannosaurus Rexes sometimes ate each other, which: gross but also cool?
14. Hadrosaurus foulkii (Duck-bills in “Land Before Time”) was the first mostly complete fossil ever found in North America. They showed a plaster casting of it at the 1893 World’s Fair, but now we know that the original hypothesis of what it looked like was totally wrong.
![Astrodon, Maryland's State dinosaur.](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Astrodon1DB.jpg?resize=640%2C334)
Astrodon, Maryland’s State dinosaur.
15. Most states have state fossils, but some states have designated state dinosaurs.
![via MSN](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/EDFA4D4A59FA8D1247253F5BE71B3D.jpg?resize=598%2C403)
via MSN
16. The classic dinosaur movie “The Lost World” (1925), whose plot supposes that dinosaurs aren’t extinct after all, was the first feature-length movie ever to feature stop-motion animation.
![Sue via Encyclopedia Brittanica](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/sue-the-t-rex.jpg?resize=550%2C412)
Sue via Encyclopedia Brittanica
17. The largest, most complete T-Rex fossil is currently in the Chicago Field Museum. Named “Sue” after paleontologist Sue Hendrickson, the fossil is 40 feet long and 13 feet tall.
17a. Sue the T-Rex was discovered in South Dakota, and if you go to the Field Museum with someone from South Dakota, that’s literally that only thing you need to know.
18. T-Rexes usually lived to be about 30 years old, so they were basically permanent millennials. Imagine a T-Rex watching Girls. I bet T-Rexes would be total Shoshannas.
19. Parasaurolophuses moved in herds. They really did move in herds.
![via screenrant](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Jurassic-Park-Dinosaur-Eggs.jpg?resize=640%2C420)
via screenrant
20. It is unlikely that dinosaur eggs were ever larger than two feet across, even for the biggest dinosaurs.
21. It’s suggested that the smartest dinosaurs were Troodons, who were maybe about as smart as modern birds.
![via Dinosaur Planet](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/maia.jpg?resize=440%2C378)
via Dinosaur Planet
22. There were totally toothless dinosaurs; “HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON” WAS REAL
![A team unearthing dinosaur fossils in Antarctica. via The Antarctic Sun](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/ctam_dino_group.jpg?resize=640%2C425)
A team unearthing dinosaur fossils in Antarctica. via The Antarctic Sun
23. Dinosaur fossils have been found on every continent, including Antarctica.
![via Extreme Tech](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/artist-impression-asteroid-impact-earth.jpg?resize=640%2C353)
via Extreme Tech
24. The only thing I remember from my astronomy class is that basically everything major that happens is because of giant space stuff running into other giant space stuff, so I feel like the hypothesis that a giant impact wiped out the dinosaurs is probably true based on that class I took freshman year of college.
![via Wikipedia](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Bałtów_Park_Jurajski_001.jpg?resize=512%2C384)
via Wikipedia
25. You can make road trips more fun if you point out that the car is about the size of a Stegosaurus and that the walnuts that you obviously packed in order to have this conversation are approximately the size of a Stegosaurus brain.
26. Some plant-eating dinosaurs swallowed rocks in order to help them digest their food.
![via Wikipedia](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Megalosaurus_display.jpg?resize=512%2C475)
via Wikipedia
27. Megalosaurus was the first dinosaur (not counting modern birds, which, I’ll remind you, are dinosaurs) to be officially named based on fossils back in 1824.
![This is not at all what an Iguanodon looks like. via Cabinet](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/selznick_serlin3.jpg?resize=460%2C345)
This is not at all what an Iguanodon looks like. via Cabinet
28. The next was the Iguanodon in 1825. They’ve got a famous thumb spike, but that spike was placed on its nose like a horn by the first scientists who classified it.
![Mary Anning and her weird dog. via Wikipedia](https://www.autostraddle.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Mary_Anning_by_B._J._Donne.jpg?resize=423%2C512)
Mary Anning and her weird dog. via Wikipedia
29. Mary Anning was a famous early paleontologist in England, who discovered some ichthyosaur and pterosaur skeletons and the first ever plesiosaur skeletons. Although none of those are actually dinosaurs, she deserves a spot on this list, because she was a working class woman making scientific breakthroughs about prehistoric reptiles during a time when the only scientists were upper class men.
30. Jurassic Park is one of the All-Time Best movies ever made and Dr. Ellie Sattler is a total badass whom I want to be/marry.
This is excellent. I may have to use these if I ever get the opportunity if I can ever find an activity partner.
I feel like these would actually be super helpful in finding an activity partner. I would be super impressed with anyone who casually mentioned any of these dino facts.
Me toooo
I just read several of these facts aloud to my coworker. He was kind of amused. I was VERY amused and I learned some stuff. THIS IS AWESOME AND YOU SHOULD FEEL AWESOME FOR MAKING THIS LIST
Dracorex hogwartsia!! I can’t believe I didn’t know about that before! I might have a new favorite dinosaur.
Dinosaurs are awesome! This list is awesome!
I learned new things from this list and I am going to randomly tell people dinosaur facts. :) (Dinosaur facts may also feature in pillow talk. Luckily, my girlfriend likes dinosaurs too.)
Just sang your first sentence to the Tegan & Sara’s “Everything is Awesome.”
I’d just like to say that I’m a professional ornithologist (studying sexual selection, no less) and so as such knew almost all of these. BIRDS AND DINOSAURS MAKE AMAZING PILLOW TALK.
Mey you are Jurass-tastic.
You bet “Jurass-she is.”
There’s something about girls talking about dinosaurs that makes me go woo hoo.
These will make an excellent addition to my current repertoire of science facts to share during sex!
(Yes, I have a repertoire. When I get nervous, I talk about science, all right?! :p )
This list brought me so much joy!!!
Also I still can’t see “Liopleurodon” without my brain going “Come to Candy Mountain Charlieeeee”
When I was three I found this old college textbook about dinosaurs (that was super inaccurate because it was from the 1970s) in a used book store and I made my parents read from it every single night for the next two years at which point I started reading it to myself. I guess what I’m saying is that dinosaurs, and all the giant reptiles that are incorrectly called dinosaurs, are awesome. Like, so awesome that I don’t even know how to relate to people who aren’t equally enthused.
Haha, basically, you made your parents make you bi!
#BInosaurScience :D
Mwahaha. Ye
Yes. That is my root now. I have the best root.
Dinosaur facts are what I use to dissuade a conversation about feelings.
Dinosaurs are just as fascinating to me as an adult in my mid-30s as they were when I was a kid. In fact, I love dinosaurs so much that I had dinosaur sheets on my bed throughout much of 20s. The ladies that loved those sheets were the ones that were right for me.
This takes me back to my elementary school years, when I’d walk into the Museum of Natural History on a field trip and name all of the skeletons before finding the name plates.
Excuse me while I excavate my previously well-read dinosaur encyclopedia from the bottom of my closet.
Love this list, but I do want to reassure everyone that, even if Triceratops and Torosaurus are the same dinosaur, we would still use the name Triceratops for it because it was coined first, at least according to all of the pop science articles I’ve read. (I point this out for anyone else who, like me, still has trust issues because Pluto is no longer a planet.)
dinosaur fact: i am in love with this article.
also cara and i want to know if t rex’s vision was really based on movement and rather than googling it i am asking you.
In the book, the vision thing was because the dinosaur DNA was spliced with frog DNA and the bad vision thing was because frogs had bad eyes. I’m pretty sure that problem didn’t exist for T-Rex.
thank you. i will keep this in mind when fleeing.
In response to the Hogwarts fact: the school motto, which appears on the crest, is “Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus,” which means “Never tickle a sleeping dragon.” =D
Dinosaur fact: I didn’t any of those clips but I still have the Jurassic Park theme stuck in my head.
somewhere out there, Ross Geller is crying tears o’ joy
![](//37.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzaz2sBS7r1qzydh2o4_r1_250.gif)
Colorado, you’re too cool for having a state dinosaur.
Fuck yeah, Colorado has a state dinosaur.
This list is going on my list of most enjoyable lists.
Oh man, brontosaurus isn’t real? I’d start crying if someone told me that during sexy times. #moodkiller
As a mammalogist (which is almost the study of boobs), I just have to point out that of all these lovely animals we are most closely related to Dimetrodon! It’s an early offshoot of the animals that became mammals. For a while they were called “mammal-like reptiles” but that’s the scientific equivalent of an oxymoron because you just can’t be both reptile and mammal. And turns out it was neither.
And while we’re on the topic of dimetrodon, those spines on its back supported a sail-like structure which it could use to regulate its temperature! Like a massive solar panel!
sb above is totally right. If somehow Triceratops and Torosaurus are synonymous names for the same species, then Triceratops stays (it’s the older name, and it’s more commonly used) and Torosaurus is thrown out. Coincidentally enough, researchers attached to Yale (which houses the type specimen of Torosaurus) have all so far argued that Torosaurus is not “just an old Triceratops“.
Also Mary Anning was indeed badass.
This is relevant to my interests. The first time I ever Got It On with someone else occurred about 2 hours after watching Jurassic Park together.
I love dinosaurs, but ugh, I can’t stand The Land Before Time. No love for the carnivores. None. I kind of wish I could buy the rights to the franchise and make “The Land Before Time XIV: The KT Extinction Event.” And then the movie just shows an asteroid impact. That’s all.
sitting in my room yelling “THEY MOVE IN HERDS” the moment i opened this article
ooh, i have a smooooth idea: mention #8, then show your well-trimmed nails & wiggle your eyebrows. probably make witty comment about, “but i am not Therizinasaurus” but i’m not witty enough to think of one : P
#29, why did they paint the dog like that it looks like the dog is pooping. “HEY I FOUND A THING! Also i needed to take my dog out but that’s not what i’m pointing at trUST ME.” well, i guess if the subject’s staying still enough….
It’s official.
The combination of Harry Potter and Dinosaurs has completed every single childhood dream.
I found this so interesting that I’m not gonna be able to forget them. One guess what I’m gonna accidentally blurt out during sexy times.
It’s BBC Sherlock quotes all over again.
If I made Irene Adler sound stupid you can be sure I’m not gonna pull off dinosaurs.
Perhaps irene Adler accompanied by velociraptor sounds?
As a born and raised south dakotan I can validate #17. I think it’s the first fact I ever learned.
We don’t have a lot to talk about over there.
Also, my uber-feminist hippie family homeschool teacher always started our units on dinosaurs by making sure we knew why the dinosaur was named sue. Because girl power.
As a child i was bullied for my love of dinosaurs…Jurassic Park was a contributing factor. I feel vindicated and validated right now. Dammit dinosaurs RULE! *goes off to put on T-Rex Kigurumi*
Maryland has a state dinosaur I AM SO EXCITED! :D I did a wee bit of googling and found that the bones/teeth/fossils were all uncovered in Maryland and DC, so makes sense.
aw, i missed that one somehow. our state dinosaur’s pretty cool. aw yeaaaah B)
This makes my childhood obsession with dinosaurs so giddy. Thank you for this!
Awesome! ♥
i feel like this would be a good time to point out that the guy who does Surviving the World periodically does livestreams with velociraptor impressions. webcomix + dinos = <3
The pleasiousaur is coming to visit tonight, Nobody here has had sex, and whats worse half of this isn’t even gay.