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Zoom Dinosaurs
DINOSAUR QUESTIONS

Current Questions	Top 16 Questions	Old Questions					Ask A Question For Site Supporters Only
		By Date	By Type of Dinosaur	General Dino. Qns.	Qns. About Other Animals	Geological Era Qns.

Apatosaurus

Brachiosaurus

Spinosaurus

T. rex

Triceratops

Velociraptor

Questions about Particular Dinosaurs S
(in alphabetical order)

Q: WHAT WAS A SALTOPUS'S FAMILY LIFE LIKE
from Valerie V., Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, USA; September 9, 1998

A: Very little is known about Saltopus. It was about 23 inches long (60 cm), ate meat, dates from the late Triassic period (about 225 million years ago) and was found in Scotland. Some paleontologiusts even doubt that it was a dinosaur. For more information on Saltopus, click here.

Q: When did Saltosasees live
from ???; June 2, 1998

A: I'm not sure which dinosaur you mean. Saltosaurus lived during the late Cretaceous period, about 83-79 million years ago. Saltopus lived during the late Triassic period, about 225-222 million years ago.

Q: What did Sauropelta look like?
from Beth, ??; March 24, 1998

A: Sauropelta was a 25 foot (7.6 m) long ankylosaur, an armored dinosaur with plates all over the top of its body and a row of spikes running along each side. For an information sheet on Sauropelta, click here.

Q: PLEASE HELP !!!!! I HAVE A REPORT DUE ON THE SAUROPELTA DINOSAUR. I CAN NOT FIND ANY PICTURE OF THIS DINOSAUR AND VERY FEW ARTICLES . I HAVE SEARCHED THE INTERNET AND THE LOCAL LIBRARY. CAN YOU HELP THANKS, MICHAEL, GRADE 3
from Michael; March 2, 1998

A: Sauropelta was an armored dinosaur from the early Cretaceous period. It looked a lot like its relative Ankylosaurus, but didn't have the bony nodes at the end of its tail or horns on its head. It was about 25 feet long and weighed over 3 tons. Like Ankylosaurus, it had horn-covered plates all over its body embedded in its skin (except on its underbelly). It also had a row of sharp spikes going along each side of its body. It was an herbivore (it ate plants) and moved very slowly on four short legs. Fossils have been found in Montana, USA.

Q: What can you tell me about the seismosaurus? Was it the last dinosaur discovered?
from Jarryd L., New York, New York, USA; April 17, 1998

A: Seismosaurus (meaning "Earthquake lizard") was a huge sauropod, perhaps up to 130-170 feet long (the estimates vary). It was a plant-eater with a long neck, whip-like tail, short legs, and a small head. It lived in the late Jurassic period, about 156-145 million years ago. Seismosaurus may simply be a very large example of Diplodocus. Seismosaurus was discovered in New Mexico, USA in 1986. There have been many new dinosaurs finds since then.

Q: 1.What was the Spinosaurus' HABITAT? 2.GEOGRAPHICAL AREA FOUND? FOSSILS FOUND? 3.WHEN AND HOW THEY BECAME EXTINCT(YEAR OR ERA)? 4.WHAT WAS ITS SIZE,WEIGHT,LENGTH,HEIGHT? 5.WHAT PHYSICAL ADAPTATIONS DID IT HAVE TO SURVIVE? 6.WAS THE SPINOSAURUS WARM-BLOODED OR COLD? 7.HOW DO YOU DETERMINE THE SEX OF THE SPINOSAURUS? 8.DID IT LAY EGGS OR HAD LIVE YOUNG? 9.WHAT PRESENT DAY ANIMALS IS IT RELATED TO? PLEASE,PLEASE,PLEASE ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS IF POSSIBLE...THANKYOU THANKYOU VERY MUCH
from Ruben G., Brownsville, TX, USA; April 10, 1998

A: For an information sheet on Spinosaurus, click here. It will answer most of your questions. Determining the sex of most dinosaurs is not possible yet (exceptions include some crested and frilled dinosaurs). Most dinosaurs reproduced by laying eggs. As to present-day relations, most paleontologists believe that the birds are the evolutionary remnant of the dinosaurs.

Q: What were the predators of the Spinosaurus?
from Pat H.,Interlochen, MI, USA; September 27, 1998

A: Spinosaurus was about 40-50 feet long (12-15 m) and weighed 4 tons or more. Itwas probably at or near the top of its local food chain. Carcharodontosaurus lived during the same time period and in a nearby region of Africa - they may have met. For more information on Spinosaurus, click here.

Q:What is a Spinosaurus and where can I get info on it????
from Tessa, Texas, USA; Feb. 7, 1998

A: Spinosaurus (meaning "spiny lizard") was a late Cretaceous, carnivorous dinosaur that had long spines along its back. They emanated from its vertebrae, and were up to 6 feet (1.8 m) long. The spines may have had a covering of skin, forming a sail-like structure across its back, perhaps used for heat regulation. Spinosaurus was a theropod about 40-50 feet long (12-15 m), a large spinosaurid. It had a large head with sharp teeth. Fossils have been found in North Africa.

Q:Do you have any details on Spinosaurus please ?
Thank you
from G.Y.; Nov. 22, 1997

A: Spinosaurus (meaning "spiny lizard") was a late Cretaceous, carniverous dinosaur that had long spines along its back. They emanated from its vertabrae, and were up to 6 feet long (1.8 m). The spines may have had a covering of skin, forming a sail-like structure across its back, perhaps used for heat regulation. Spinosaurus was a theropod about 40 feet long (12 m), and had a large head with sharp teeth. Fossils have been found in North Africa.

Q:How did Spinosaurus travel? Did it travel alone, with a partner, in a pack, or in a herd?
from Katie, Boone, IA, USA; Feb. 10, 1998

A: Very few Spinosaurus fossils have been found, and they're incomplete. Herding behavior is determined by finding bonebeds of that species. (Bonebeds are large deposits of fossil bones found together, mostly of the same species.) No bonebeds of Spinosaurus have been found, so no one known if they congrgated in herds or not.

Q: Where was the Stegosaurus's fossils found
from Kerry F., Myerstown, PA, USA; December 14, 1998

A: Stegosaurus fossils have been found in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming, USA. For more information on Stegosaurus, click here.

Q:What time period did Stegosaurus live in?
from Rithu S., Coralville, IA, USA; Feb. 25, 1998

A: Stegosaurus lived during the late Jurassic period.

Q:I'm doing a project on the Stegosaurus and there's some infomation that i'd like to know. What are the stegosaurus's social behaviours? What adaptions or special features did the stegosaurus posses which enabled it to survive in its habitat? If you could answer these questions I would be grateful. Thanx
from Steve C., Richmond Hill, CA; Feb. 23, 1998

A:Stegosaurus may have been a herding animal, since many ot the stegosaurians were.

It was a slow mover, so when a predator approached, it had to stay put and defend itself. For protection, Stegosaurus had large spikes on its tail; its triangular plates may also have been used as protection.

Q: I want to know information about the Stegosaurus dinosaurus
from Suchitra, Bangalore, Karnataka, India; December 1, 1998

A: For an information sheet on Stegosaurus, click here.

Q: "What kind of plants did Stegosaurus eat? How much do we know about what Stegosaurus ate?"
from Nyree L., Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; May 5, 1998

A: I don't have any references that tell exactly which Jurassic plants that Stegosaurus ate. Common plants during the Jurassic were cycads, ferns, horse-tails, conifers, palms, and some broad-leafed trees (like gingkos and magnolias).

There are many different ways to study dinosaurs' diets, including looking at:

Fossilized feces - Coprolites help identify dinosaurs' feeding habits.
Fossilized stomach contents - these are very rare to find.
Teeth - A dinosaur's tooth structure also tells us what type of food the dinosaur ate. Meat eaters need sharp teeth for for tearing flesh; plant eaters have teeth that would strip, and perhaps chew, foliage.
Gastroliths - Gizzard stones (which aided digestion), have been found with some dinosaur fossils. These also yield information about dinosaur diets.
Girth - Gut size is also an indicator of diet. Large plant eaters need a lot of calories to sustain their mass. In order to get sufficient energy from plant matter, a lot of vegetation must be digested. This requires a large digestion area.

Q: I am 7 years old and I am very interested by the stegosaure. Please could you confirm that the weight of the stegosaure is 1 ton; I am feeling that is not enough regarding its sizes.
Thank you, Best Regards
from Lagarde A., Ancerville, Meuse, France; September 27, 1998

A: Some references say that it weighed about 1 ton, others say that it weighed between 1 and 2 tons. This does seem a bit light for a 26-30 feet long (8-9 m) animal, but a lot of the Stegosaurus' length was its tiny head, relatively thin neck, and thin tail. Plus, it had a very thin cross-section (it was not a very wide dinosaur). Additionally, dinosaur weights are very approximate as they are estimated from the dinosaur's reconstructed volume times its estimated density. There's a lot of room for error in this calculation.

Q: Did baby Stegasaurs's have plates?
from James Mc C, Phil., PA, USA; October 21, 1998

A: Yes.

Q:How many plates did the Stegosaurus have?
from Brady and Max, Coralville, IA, USA; Feb. 22, 1998

A: Stegosaurus had two rows of thin, triangular plates running along its back. Different specimens have different numbers of plates, but 17 seems to be the currently accepted number. Neither the exact positioning of the plates nor their function is known. Also, different species of Stegosaurus had different numbers of tail spikes; Stegosaurus ungulatis had 8 spikes and Stegosaurus stenops had 4 spikes.

Q: What was the Stegosaurus? Was it a vegetarian? And how well did they protect their young?
from Kerri C., Carrboro, NC, USA; May 28, 1998

A: Stegosaurus was a vegetarian about 30 feet long with 2 rows of triangular plates along its back and tail spikes. Its small brain was the size of a walnut, its skull was long and narrow; it had a toothless beak and small cheek teeth. Its head was carried close to the ground. For an information sheet on Stegosaurus, click here.

Q:1. What type of rock are stegosaurus fossils usually found in? 2. What adaptions or special features did the stegosaurus posses which enabled it to survive in its habitat? 3. What are the stegosaurus's social behaviours?
from ????; Feb. 22, 1998

A: Most fossils are found in sedimentary rock from the appropriate geologic age (the late Jurassic period in this case); click here to see pages on fossils.
Click here for an information sheet on Stegosaurus.

Q:Are there any close relatives of Stegosaurus that have no large plates or spikes on there body.
from Brittany H., Dover, NH, USA; Feb. 10, 1998

A: All the Stegosaurids (like Stegosaurus, Tuojiangosaurus, Wuerhosaurus, Kentrosaurus, etc.) had two rows of plates and/or spines along their backs. That's one of the defining characteristics of the stegosaurids.

Q:The daily diet of Stegosaurus was made up of large amounts of low calorie plant material. What are the names of some of these plants? What are the names of some high calorie plants? Thank you.
from Elizabeth, Everett, Washington, USA; Nov. 3, 1997

A: Cycads were a very common plant in the Mesozoic Era (and one species is still around today). It has fernlike leaves. Flowering plants didn't evolve until the beginning- to mid-Cretaceous, toward the end of the Mesozoic.

Highly caloric plant material includes seeds, nuts, and some fruit that have a high fat content. Leaves are low in calories.

Q: I have a report to do on a Stegosaurus and need some info. fast! What can you give me? Katie, Grade 6 What are the stegosaurus' plates made out of?
from Katie G., Calgary, Alberta, Canada; November 24, 1998

A: For an an information sheet on Stegosaurus, click here. The plates were made of bone which was not solid, but was filled with tube-like tunnels. The plates were prbobaly well-nourished by blood vessels, indicating that the plates may have been used to regulate the dinosaur's temperature.

Q: How was Stegosaurus born?
from Kaitlin S., Guaynabo, Puerto Rico; March 29, 1998

A: Like most dinosaurs, Stegosaurus hatched from egg. For more information on Stegosaurus, click here.

Q: What was the lifespan of the stegosaurus?
from Cherie B., Luling, LA, USA; September 21, 1998

A: I don't know. For some information on dinosaur life spans, see the section in "Anatomy and Behavior."

Q: how big is the Stegosaurus?(in size) How much does it weigh?
from Drew G., nc, USA; September 15, 1998

A: Stegosaurus was about 26-30 feet long (8-9 m), about 9 feet tall (2.75 m), and weighed about 1 ton. For more information on Stegosaurus, click here.

Q: How long was the Stegosaurus and how big was it?
from Erin B, Richardson, TX, USA; April 28, 1998

A: For information on Stegosaurus, click here.

Q:Were the Stegasaurus's plates really used as body cooling devices?
from Dylan W., Elizabethtown, Kentucky, USA; Jan. 30, 1998

A: Stegosaurus had bony plates that were embedded in its back. Since they were not attached to its bones, no one is sure exactly how they were positioned. The function of these plates is uncertain; perhaps they were for temperature regulation, since they contained networks of blood vessels, or maybe they were for protection, or mating display purposes.

Q: Is Stokesosaurus clevelandi really a Jurassic tyrannosaur? If this is true, wouldn't they be fairly cosmopolitan?
from Alexander C., New York, NY, USA; November 3, 1998

A: Stokesosaurus clevelandi, only known from a very incomplete fossil, dates from the late Jurassic period, about 156 to 145 million years ago, although some of its skeletal adaptations resemble those of dinosaurs from the late Cretaceous period. Its classification is unsure; if it was a tyrannosaurid, it was by far the earliest one. It might be a carnosaur.

Q: Hi! I'm Samantha and I wondered if you would answer my question. I wanted to know more about dinosaurs, so would you tell me some stuff or info on Struthiomimus?
from Samantha, Strathray, Ontario, CA; Feb. 2, 1998

A: Struthiomimus was an ostrich-like carnivorous dinosaur from the late Cretaceous period. It was about 12 feet (3.7 m) long and about 6 feet (1.8 m) tall. It had a long neck, small head with a toothless horny beak, walked on two strong legs, had long arms, three-fingered hands with curved claws, three-toed feet, large eyes, large brains, and a long tail for balancing. It must have been a very fast runner, like an ostrich. It probably laid eggs and ran in herds. Fossils have been found in North America (Alberta, Canada and New Jersey, USA). It was first discovered in 1914. It is very similar to the dinosaur Ornithomimus

(a fellow member of the family Ornithomimidae, the "bird mimics"), but Struthiomimus had longer arms, and curved claws on its fingers.

Q: Will you please give me any and all information that you have on the Stygimoloch? It will be greatly appreciated! Grasias .
from Joseph C., Sparta, NJ, USA; December 2, 1998

A: There's an entry on Stygimoloch in the Dino Dictionary.

Q: Do you have information on the "Stygimoloch" or river styx devil dinosaur for a school report I am doing at Oak Grove School in Green Oaks, Illinois? Thank-you, Thank-you, Thank-you.
from Makara F., Lake Bluff, Illinois, USA; May 2, 1998

A: Stygimoloch (meaning "demon from the river Styx") was a bipedal, plant-eating dinosaurs with very strange, demonic-looking, spikes and bumps on its skull. The many horns ranged up to 4 inches (100 mm) long. Stygimoloch was about 7 feet (2 m) long) and lived during the very late Cretaceous period, about 68-65 million years ago. Only parts of Stygimoloch's skull have been found - in Montana, USA. Stygimoloch belongs to to the family Pachycephalosauridae, the Ornithischian dinosaurs that had domed, spiked skulls. Pachycephalosaurs probably engaged in head-butting as both a defense and in intra-species rivalry. Stygimoloch was named in 1983 by British paleontologist Peter M. Galton and German paleontologist Hans-Dieter Sues.

Q:I need to know if Styracosaurus traveled in a herd? Also how tall was it?
from Matt, Boone, IA, USA; Feb. 18, 1998

A: Styracosaurus was about 6 feet (1.8 m) tall and 18 feet (5.5 m) long. A bonebed of about 100 Styracosaurus fossils was found in Arizona, indicating that they did travel in herds.

Q: My name is James and I'm in the 6th Grade. I have a dinosaur report due on 3/27/98. I am doing the Styracosaurus, and I just can't find any information on how they reared their young. You know, like if they took good or bad care of the babies, how they bore their young, how long it was before the young moved on, and the family structure. I also am having a little bit of trouble on their behavior. I already have the info on behavior on your site, but I can't find anything else. Like, how they interact, their response to stimuli, and their intelligence. Finally, I would please like some info on the fossils of my dinosaur... Condition, location, age, and if they're rare. Thank you very much for your time. I really appreciate it.
from James O., San Carlos, CA, USA; March 21, 1998

A: You (or your teacher) want a lot of information that isn't known. Styracosaurus was a ceratopsian dinosaur, and it was probably a herding dinosaur (this is deduced from bonebed evidence). Like most dinosaurs, they hatched from eggs. They may have cared for their young, given their herding behavior, but to what extent is unknown. As to intelligence, the ceratopsians were in the mid-range of dinosaur brain-size/body-size; for a chart of the dinosaurs' relative intelligence, click here. Determining most of the other behavioral questions you ask about is virtually impossible from fossil evidence.

For an information sheet on Styracosaurus that answers your questions on the numbers of fossils, the location, and age of fossils (which is the age of the dinosaurs themselves), click here.

Q: Hello! I am an eight year old boy who has an interest in dinosaurs! We were watching TV yesterday when we saw a program about a new dinosaur which was found in Africa, its name is Suchomimis. We noticed that it looked a lot like Baryonx. Has anyone noticed the similarity? And who do I alert to tell them about it?
from Mathew L., Fairfield, CT, USA; November 15, 1998

A: You are very observant and also remarkably knowledgable about dinosaurs! Suchomimis and Baryonyx are both spinosaurs (theropods with long snouts, crocodile-like teeth and vertebral spines). For more information on Suchomimus, click here.

Q: I would like to know more information on Suchomimus tenerenis, thank you.
from David H, Timaru, New Zealand; November 13, 1998

A: For a page on Suchomimus, click here or look in the DInosuar Dictionary under "S."

Q: new dinosaur fossils found in africa. what is it called ?,and where could i find out more ?
from Danz M., Hope, B.C., Canada; November 27, 1998

A: Suchomimus, and for more information about it, click here.

Q: When and where were Supersaurus' first discovered?
from Richard L., Menai Bridge, Anglesey, North Wales; June 10, 1998

A: The first Supersaurus fossil was found in western Colorado, USA, by paleontologist James A. Jensen in 1972 and was named in 1985. It is only known from an incomplete fossil which includes two shoulder blades 8 feet (2.4 m) long, ribs 10 feet (3 m) long, neck vertebrae 4.5 feet (1.4 m) long, and a pelvis 6 feet (1.8 m ) wide. For more information on Supersaurus click here.

Q: I'm doing a project for my second grade glass on Supersaurus. I would like to know where they found the fossils and when. Have they ever found a complete skeleton? Thank you.
from Mike O., McLean, VA, USA; March 17, 1998

A: Fossil bones of Supersaurus, a huge diplodocid dinosaur, have been found in western Colorado, USA. It was first discovered in 1972 by the American paleontologist James A. Jensen. Only a few bones have been found, including huge neck bones and a gigantic shoulderblade taller than a man.

Q: Is there a Dinosaur big than Supersaurus?
from Anthony M., Condor, NC, USA; March 14, 1998

A: Supersaurus may be the biggest dinosaur yet found. Click here for more huge dinosaurs.

Q:I really can't find anything about the syntarus. Please email me back a.s.a.p. Kylie
from Kylene T., USA; Feb. 2, 1998

A: Syntarsus (meaning "fused ankle") was a very early Saurischian dinosaur from the late Triassic period. It was a small, bipedal primitive dinosaur, about 2 feet tall, and weighed about 60-70 pounds. It was a carnivore. It had four-fingered hands and four-toed feet with fused ankle bones (like those of early ornithopods although it was a saurischian dinosaur). It was a crested Theropod related to Coelophysis. Fossils have found in Africa and USA. (p.s. your e-mail address didn't work.)

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