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Dinosaurs are the “calling cards” of paleontology, captivating people’s attention for nearly two centuries. These remarkable reptiles have become ingrained in our culture, inspiring books, films, video games, and even making appearances in advertisements and design.

The first dinosaur was described in 1824 from fossils discovered in Oxfordshire, England. It was named “Megalosaurus,” meaning “great lizard.” As more fossils were unearthed, species like Iguanodon and Hylaeosaurus were also identified. These animals did not fit into the existing biological classification system at the time. In 1842, zoologist Richard Owen grouped them together under the new term “dinosaurs.”

In modern taxonomy, dinosaurs are defined as all animals that are descendants of the last common ancestor of Triceratops, the house sparrow, and Diplodocus carnegiei. This means that birds are technically dinosaurs as well. To avoid confusion, however, in this article, “dinosaurs” will specifically refer to non-avian dinosaurs.

Questions about the gigantism of ancient animals inevitably arise for anyone interested in paleontology. Dinosaurs undoubtedly lead the way in popularity, but other animals—mammoths, dragonflies, sharks, sloths, crocodiles, pterosaurs, and even some species of primates—also capture the imagination. In fact, any ancient creature that exceeds a certain stereotypical size norm often prompts people to ask: Why were animals so much bigger in the past? Before answering this question, let’s explore three popular myths associated with this topic.

Millions of years ago, during the Devonian period, lobe-finned fish made an evolutionary leap and ventured onto land as amphibians. Their descendants spread across all continents and even conquered the skies. However, some of these creatures returned to their original habitat—the water. These animals are known as secondary aquatic species, as they had to readapt to life in water. Independently of one another, they developed similar adaptations because their new environment, the ocean, was universal. The first to return to the marine world were reptiles, and their golden age occurred during the Mesozoic era. In this article, you will be introduced to the main groups of marine reptiles that inhabited our planet during the time of the dinosaurs.

Did Dinosaurs Really Go Extinct?

Approximately 66 million years ago, one of the most significant mass extinctions in Earth’s history occurred. Paleontologists refer to it as the “Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction,” but most people know it as the “Dinosaur Extinction.” It is widely believed that this group of reptiles vanished from the face of the planet forever. However, that is not entirely true.

If you ask a specialist, they will tell you that all non-avian dinosaurs disappeared. But birds, which modern research classifies as theropod dinosaurs, survived the extinction and are thriving today. It may feel strange to think of birds as living dinosaurs, but let’s explore whether birds have any unique characteristics that their dinosaur ancestors lacked.

Tyrannosaurus rex—the true king of dinosaurs. T. rex has rightfully become an icon of paleontology. This enormous seven-ton predator embodied many advanced traits. Let’s take a closer look at them.