IGUANODON
Iguanodon bernissartensis
Meaning: "Iguana Tooth"
📊 STATS
Size comparison:
As long as a school bus!
📖 ABOUT IGUANODON
Meet Iguanodon, the 'Iguana Tooth' dinosaur! This plant-eater was a master of walking on two legs or four, and had a surprising secret weapon on its thumb!
Imagine a giant iguana, but way, way bigger! That's Iguanodon! This amazing dinosaur lived a long, long time ago, during the Early Cretaceous period. Its name means 'Iguana Tooth' because its teeth looked a bit like those of modern-day iguanas. Iguanodon was a herbivore, meaning it munched on plants all day long. It probably ate ferns, cycads, and maybe even early flowering plants.
What made Iguanodon really special was its thumb! Instead of a regular thumb, it had a pointy spike. Scientists think it used this spike for defense against predators, or maybe even to help break open tough fruits and seeds. Iguanodon could walk on two legs when it needed to run fast, but it usually preferred to walk on all fours. This helped it support its heavy body. Huge groups of Iguanodon fossils have been found together, suggesting they may have lived in herds. Imagine seeing a whole group of these giants roaming around! They were truly magnificent creatures.
🔬 CLASSIFICATION
- Group
- Ornithopoda
- Family
- Iguanodontidae
- Period
- Early Cretaceous (145-100 Ma)
- Era
- 126.0 - 122.0 million years ago
🗺️ DISCOVERY
- Year
- 1825
- Discovered by
- Gideon Mantell
- Location
- Sussex, England
- Fossils found in
- Belgium, England, Germany, Spain, USA
🎨 SCIENTIFIC ILLUSTRATION
Artistic reconstruction of Iguanodon based on fossil evidence
🗺️ WHERE FOSSILS WERE FOUND
Belgium, England, Germany, Spain, USA
🤓 FUN FACTS
- ✨ Iguanodon was one of the first dinosaurs ever discovered and named!
- ✨ It had strong arms and hands to help pull branches down to eat leaves.
- ✨ Iguanodon could run as fast as 24 kilometers per hour!
- ✨ Scientists once thought Iguanodon's thumb spike went on its nose!
- ✨ Fossils of Iguanodon have been found on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean!
💡 DID YOU KNOW?
Get this: The first Iguanodon fossil was discovered by Gideon Mantell's wife, Mary Ann, while she was out for a walk!
