Uncovering the Ancient Secrets of the Stegosaurus You Wont Believe What We Found

A hungry Allosaurusruns up to Stegosaurus, ready to attack. But as it gets close, Stegosaurusswings its heavy tail, and—whack! One of its thick, pointy spikes drives into Allosaurus’tailbone. Allosauruslimps away, and Stegosauruscontinues to munch ferns and young trees.

Stegosaurusis famous for its two rows of kite-shaped plates that stick out from its neck, back, and tail. But the paleontologist who first discovered a Stegosaurus fossil thought the plates laid flat on its back like a turtle’s shell. That’s why its name in Greek means “roof lizard.”

So why does Stegosaurus have these plates? Some scientists think they were used to attract mates, similar to the frill on a Triceratops.Others think the plates protected Stegosaurus from attacking predators or absorbed heat from the sun to help warm the animal. Although the plates are still a mystery, fossilized footprints reveal that this dino likely traveled in family groups.

Stegosaurus: Bony Plates & Tiny Brain

Experts think that Stegosaurus’s tail was its main method of defense. The dino could swing its large tail from side to side with great force. A fossilized tailbone of Allosaurus has a hole in it the size of a Stegosaurus tail spike—ouch!

Stegosaurus lived about 145 million years ago during the Jurassic period in what’s now Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. It was about the length of a bus and weighed almost 14, 000 pounds. But this enormous animal had a brain that was only slightly larger than a walnut.

One early paleontologist believed that Stegosaurus had a second brain in its tail because the expert noticed a cavity like those where the brain would be in its rump. But that’s a busted myth—the empty space likely held a mass of tissue that might have helped produce extra energy or was simply a fluid-filled gland.

Ignite Her Curiosity: 60 Children's Books To Inspire Science Loving Mighty Girls

Ali and Sean travel back 150 million years to the Jurassic period to get a look at a flying dinosaur called the Anchiornis. Tour guide Simon reveals that this dinosaur actually had feathers!

Amazing dino discoveries Paleontologists are constantly learning new things about these ancient animals—in fact, scientists find more than 45 new dinosaur species each year! Check back here for all the latest dinosaur news.

Experts think that Stegosaurus’s tail was its main method of defense. The dino could swing its large tail from side to side with great force. A fossilized tailbone of Allosaurus has a hole in it the size of a Stegosaurus tail spike—ouch!

Stegosaurus lived about 145 million years ago during the Jurassic period in what’s now Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. It was about the length of a bus and weighed almost 14, 000 pounds. But this enormous animal had a brain that was only slightly larger than a walnut.

One early paleontologist believed that Stegosaurus had a second brain in its tail because the expert noticed a cavity like those where the brain would be in its rump. But that’s a busted myth—the empty space likely held a mass of tissue that might have helped produce extra energy or was simply a fluid-filled gland.

Ignite Her Curiosity: 60 Children's Books To Inspire Science Loving Mighty Girls

Ali and Sean travel back 150 million years to the Jurassic period to get a look at a flying dinosaur called the Anchiornis. Tour guide Simon reveals that this dinosaur actually had feathers!

Amazing dino discoveries Paleontologists are constantly learning new things about these ancient animals—in fact, scientists find more than 45 new dinosaur species each year! Check back here for all the latest dinosaur news.

Experts think that Stegosaurus’s tail was its main method of defense. The dino could swing its large tail from side to side with great force. A fossilized tailbone of Allosaurus has a hole in it the size of a Stegosaurus tail spike—ouch!

Stegosaurus lived about 145 million years ago during the Jurassic period in what’s now Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. It was about the length of a bus and weighed almost 14, 000 pounds. But this enormous animal had a brain that was only slightly larger than a walnut.

One early paleontologist believed that Stegosaurus had a second brain in its tail because the expert noticed a cavity like those where the brain would be in its rump. But that’s a busted myth—the empty space likely held a mass of tissue that might have helped produce extra energy or was simply a fluid-filled gland.

Ignite Her Curiosity: 60 Children's Books To Inspire Science Loving Mighty Girls

Ali and Sean travel back 150 million years to the Jurassic period to get a look at a flying dinosaur called the Anchiornis. Tour guide Simon reveals that this dinosaur actually had feathers!

Amazing dino discoveries Paleontologists are constantly learning new things about these ancient animals—in fact, scientists find more than 45 new dinosaur species each year! Check back here for all the latest dinosaur news.

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