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Dinosaurs by type › Theropods
Theropods Theropods walked on two legs and include every meat-eating dinosaur, from Tyrannosaurus to tiny Microraptor. Not all of them ate meat: some turned to plants and eggs. Many had feathers, and one branch of the family is still with us, as birds.
How to tell
What makes a theropod
01 Two legs They walked on their hind legs, with the tail held out behind for balance.
02 Three toes Most left three-toed footprints, much like a bird's.
03 Hollow bones Their bones were hollow and light, as birds' bones are today.
Tap any of them for its own page of facts and photos, or to have it follow you.
All the types
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First dinosaurs Giants Jurassic Europe Hunters Plant-eaters Feathered and unusual In the sea In the air
The first dinosaurs
Coelophysis Trots after you, quick and light Eoraptor Scampers after you Herrerasaurus Strides after you Plateosaurus Plods after you on its hind legs Thecodontosaurus Scurries after you Liliensternus Lopes after you
Jurassic giants
Diplodocus Plods after you, tail swaying Brachiosaurus Strides after you, head high Apatosaurus Lumbers after you Stegosaurus Ambles after you, plates up Allosaurus Stalks after you Ceratosaurus Prowls after you
Jurassic Europe
Megalosaurus Strides after you Archaeopteryx Runs after you, wings half open Compsognathus Darts after you Scelidosaurus Trundles after you Dilophosaurus Lopes after you Kentrosaurus Ambles after you, spikes bristling
The great hunters
Tyrannosaurus Stomps after you, head low Velociraptor Darts after you, tail out straight Spinosaurus Prowls after you, sail swaying Giganotosaurus Strides after you Carnotaurus Sprints after you Baryonyx Wades after you, snout low
The plant-eaters
Triceratops Trundles after you, horns first Ankylosaurus Trundles after you, club swinging Parasaurolophus Strolls after you Iguanodon Strolls after you Pachycephalosaurus Trots after you, head down Argentinosaurus Plods after you, shaking the ground
Feathered and unusual
Therizinosaurus Shuffles after you, claws dangling Oviraptor Trots after you Gallimimus Sprints after you Microraptor Flutters and scrambles after you Styracosaurus Trundles after you, spikes fanned Edmontosaurus Ambles after you
In the sea live on their own page: choosing one takes you there.
In the sea
Ichthyosaurus Swims after you with flicks of its tail Plesiosaurus Rows after you on four flippers Liopleurodon Powers after you Mosasaurus Surges after you Elasmosaurus Glides after you, neck snaking Archelon Rows after you, slow and steady
In the air
Pteranodon Soars after you Quetzalcoatlus Glides after you on vast wings Rhamphorhynchus Flaps after you, tail streaming Dimorphodon Flaps after you Pterodactylus Flits after you Tapejara Sails after you