Millions of years ago, dinosaurs lived on Earth, and over decades of research, scientists have learned many interesting details about these creatures. Researchers know what they looked like, what they ate, and so on thanks to fossil remains of bones, teeth, as well as skin and paw prints. Today we know that among dinosaurs there were both creatures with skin and feathered species. Dinosaurs could also be carnivores and herbivores; some species were well adapted to hunting, while others were well adapted to defending themselves from enemies. The ability to run quickly greatly increased the likelihood of escaping even from the most bloodthirsty predator, which is why many dinosaurs had very developed hind limbs. Which dinosaur ran faster than all the others?
Scientists know hundreds of species of dinosaurs, and some of them ran very fast
Contents
- 1 How scientists study dinosaurs
- 2 The fastest dinosaurs in the world
- 3 How fast did velociraptors run
- 4 Small and fast dinosaurs
How scientists study dinosaurs
Determining the running speed of dinosaurs is very difficult because it requires taking into account many different data. First of all, paleontologists study the traces of ancient creatures – from them they can determine how strong the steps of certain species were and how often they were made. Scientists also look at the structure of the legs of dinosaurs: the longer the limbs and the more muscles, the faster they could run.
Fossil footprint of a dinosaur. Photo source: lenta.ru
There is great difficulty in reconciling the speed of dinosaurs from their fossilized footprints. Scientists usually find footprints of ancient creatures in places where there were rivers and lakes millions of years ago – the traces are deeper there, so they are preserved for millions of years. Only in such an environment not a single land creature can run at full speed. Therefore, to determine the exact running speed of ancient lizards, scientists should study foot prints on a dry surface. But such discoveries are made very rarely.
Scientists' knowledge of how dinosaurs ran is not precise. But researchers still have contenders for the title of the fastest dinosaur in the world.
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The fastest dinosaurs in the world
When talking about running dinosaurs, they usually refer to members of the order Ornithomimosauria, which are also known as ostrich-like dinosaurs. As the name suggests, these omnivorous creatures resembled ostriches in their body structure.
Ornithomimosaurs were similar to ostriches. Image source: nationalgeographic.com
Modern ostriches are among the fastest animals on Earth. These flightless birds, whose height can reach 2.8 meters, are capable of accelerating up to 70 kilometers per hour. To a greater extent, their ability to accelerate strongly when running is due to the fact that they have very long and muscular legs. The stride length of ostriches can be 3-5 meters, which is why they can cover long distances in a short period of time.
Ostriches also run fast due to the fact that they have a light and streamlined body, which creates a minimum of air resistance. Ostriches also have very high endurance, which helps them withstand long races. They need the ability to run quickly in order to survive in the wild.
By running, ostriches save their lives in the wild. Photo source: arhe.msk.ru
Judging by archaeological finds, dinosaurs from the ornithomimosa group were very similar to ostriches, at least in the structure of their legs. Based on this, scientists believe that they could accelerate to 48 kilometers per hour. Most likely, this skill saved their lives when attacked by predators.
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How Velociraptors ran fastAlso, the title of the fastest dinosaurs in the world may belong to Velociraptors. These small dinosaurs were about 1.5 meters long, and the length of their legs was such that they could apparently accelerate to 40 kilometers per hour. From Latin, the species name of these dinosaurs is a mixture of the words “fast” and “hunter.”
Velociraptors were small but dangerous creatures. Image source: mirvu.ru
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Small and fast dinosaurs< /h2>
Dinosaurs from the genus Compsognathus also had the ability to run fast. Their fossilized remains were found by scientists in the territories of Germany and Bavaria. Judging by the skeletons, their body length reached only 140 centimeters. They were predators and attacked victims in packs – the exact speed at which they ran is unknown, but scientists are again inclined to figure about 40 kilometers per hour.
Despite their tiny size, Compsognathus were also very fast. Image source: dinoanimals.com
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It turns out that, if necessary, some types of dinosaurs could easily catch up with a person and eat him. Only record holders like Usain Bolt, who once accelerated to 44.72 kilometers per hour, could have a chance to escape from bloodthirsty predators.