Fun Facts About Iguanodon
Iguanodon was a plant-eating dinosaur that lived in Europe during the Early Cretaceous period. It was the second type of dinosaur discovered and one of the first to be named. Here are some fun facts:
- Its name means iguana tooth.
- The first Iguanodon fossils were discovered in Sussex, England in 1825.
- Scientists initially thought the fossils belonged to a lizard-type animal.
- Iguanodon is famous for its thumb spike, which was originally believed to be a nose horn.
- The thumb spike was likely used as a defensive weapon and to gather food.
- Iguanodon could alternate between walking on 2 and 4 legs.
- It was a bird-hipped dinosaur like Triceratops and Stegosaurus.
- Iguanodon was a large dinosaur, reaching up to 4 tons in weight.
- It was one of the first animals to chew its food and had complex teeth that were replaced throughout its life.
Iguanodon lived around 130 million years ago. This fascinating creature is now extinct, but we continue to learn more about dinosaurs and our Earth’s history as fossils are uncovered.