The Atlas of Diabolical Dinosaurs

UNEDITED TEXT

This book was conceived, edited and designed
by Nextquisite Ltd, London
www.nextquisite.com
Copyright ©2020 by Nextquisite Ltd

All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction,
in any manner, is prohibited.

Project Director Anne McRae
Illustrations Daniel Hamilton
Design Marco Nardi
Text Dora Martin
Editing Susan Bishop
Consultant Dr. Susanne Harris

ISBN 978-1-912944-37-8

First edition 2020

Printed in China

Text by Dora Martin Academic consultant:
Illustrations by Daniel Hamilton Dr. Susanne Harris

TABLE OF CONTENTS

6-7 A WORLD OF DINOSAURS 14-15 HORNS & FRILLS

Pinpoints location of 50 famous dinosaurs 16-17 Ceratopsids plus info on crested Hadrosaurs &
18-19 Pachycephalosaurus
8-9 DISCOVERING DINOSAURS-false text
NORTH AMERICA SCENE
Geological time, fossils, continental drift,
& history of dinosaur discoveries Quetzalcoatlus - Pterosaurs

SOUTH AMERICA

The main find sites & notes on the most famous
South American dinosaurs

10-11 MESOZOIC WORLD 20-21 TRIASSIC TERROR
10-11
12-13 The Triassic, Jurassic & Cretaceous times Gnathovorax chasing Mendon, early dinosaurs &
neck spikes
NORTH AMERICA
22-23 CLASH OF THE TITANS
The main find sites & notes on the most famous
North American dinosaurs Argentinosaurus fighting Giganotosaurus

PREDATORS & PREY

Stegosaurus & Allosaurus & a parade of Jurassic
giant sauropods

4 TABLE OF CONTENTS

24-25 EUROPE 38-39 AFRICA
26-27
The main find sites & notes on the most famous 40-41 The main find sites & notes on the most famous
European dinos 42-43 African dinosaurs

IGUANODON FEARSOME FISHERS

Archaeopteryx, dinosaurs & birds Spinosaurus & column on Madagascar

AUSTRALIA & ANTARCTICA MAP

The main find sites & notes on the most famous
Australian & Antarctic dinosaurs

28-29 MARINE REPTILES 44-45 LIVING IN ANTARCTICA
30-31 46-47
Ichthyosaurs, pliosaurs & co. 48 Dinosaurs, marine reptiles and birds of Antarctica
32-33 during the Cretaceous
36-37 ASIA
THE END OF THE DINOSAURS
The main find sites & notes on the most famous
Asian dinosaurs Extinction theories & how birds are
modern dinosaurs
SOCIAL LIVES
Index & Acknowledgments
Giganotoraptor & feathered dinosaurs

NESTING SITES

Therizinosaurus colony & eggs & babies

5

a world of dinosaurs The dinosaur with the longest
name is Micropachycephalosaurus,
We are living in a golden age of dinosaur discovery. About 50 which means tiny, thick-headed
entirely new species are found every year—that’s almost one a dinosaur!
week! Paleontologists using a combination of traditional skills
and high tech are revolutionising dinosaur science. Ophthalmosaurus
105–93 Mya

Leptoceratops
105–93 Mya

Plateosaurus
105–93 Mya

Tyrannosaurus
68-66 Mya

Pachycephalosaurus Torvosaurus
105–93 Mya
76–65 Mya

Anabisetia Spinosaurus
93–89 Mya 105–93 Mya

Amargasaurus Riojasaurus
129–122 Mya 228–208 Mya

Stegosaurus
155-145 Mya

Caelestiventus was one of the Austroraptor
earliest pterosaurs. It lived in North 85–66 Mya
America during the Late Triassic.
lived in North America during the
Late Triassic

6

The discovery of feathered Mamenchisaurus Plant-eating sauropods were the
dinosaurs in China in the 1990s 163–140 Mya largest dinosaurs ever to walk the
changed the way we think about Earth. With their lengthy necks
dinosaurs and made it clear, for the and tails, some were almost as
first time, that modern birds are the long as two semi-trailer trucks.
direct descendants of dinosaurs.

Balaur Micro raptor The biggest pterosaurs
105–93 Mya 105–93 Mya were about the same
Struthiosaurus size as a modern light
105–93 Mya aircraft.

Giant Mongolian
pterosaur
About 70 Mya

Therizinosaurus Dilong Anchiornis Askeptosaurus
70 Mya 105–93 Mya 168–151 Mya 247–225 Mya
Gigantspinosaurus
163–157 Mya Elasmosaurus
About 70 Mya

Isanosaurus Zhenyuanlong
105–93 Mya About 125 Mya
Struthiosaurus
105–93 Mya

Liopleurodon
166–140 Mya

Majungasaurus Tuatara
250–0 Mya
72–66 Mya

Muttaburrasaurus
105–93 Mya

Antarctanax Cartorhynchus Ceratopsids like Triceratops and
About 250 Mya About 248 Mya the newly discovered Hellboy had
wildly elaborate displays of bony
horns and frills on their skulls.

Regaliceratops
About 68 Mya

Although dinosaurs ruled the Earth, many 7
other creatures lived alongside them. The
descendants of some of these groups have
survived for example, as crocodiles and turtles,
but others, like the pterosaurs, are gone.

geological time ; discovering
dinosaurs
Scientists divide the history of our planet into units of Te d si c
time. Planet Earth formed about 4.6 billion years ago. of on gy (t e t o Dinosaur science officially began in Britain in 1842 when
The first primitive forms of life appeared around 4 li fo h o c e bo the brilliant but snarky naturalist Richard Owen coined
billion years ago but life didn’t become abundant until the word dinosaur, or “terrible lizard”. Scientists had
the Cambrian period, about 550 mya. The dinosaurs lived 1 , 0 e r o) be been collecting and describing fossils that turned out to
during the Mesozoic era, between about 252–66 mya. in o , s e l y G a be dinosaurs for 150 years before then, but it was Owen’s
genius that identified them as a single group of reptiles.
B i n a G ny
what is a fossil?
quaternary HOLOCENE 10,000 years ago
Almost everything we know about dinosaurs and other
people extinct creatures is based on the study of fossils. A fossil
is the remains of a plant or animal that has undergone a
CENOZOIC PLEISTOCENE 1.8 mya preservation process, often lasting thousands or millions of
years. Most fossils are the hard parts of an animal, such as
PLIOCENE 5.3 mya bones, that have turned to stone.

tertiary MIOCENE 23 mya 4. Excavation

OLIGOCENE 33.9 mya age of mammals Movements in the Earth’s crust
flowering plants carry the deeply buried corpse to
EOCENE 55.8 mya the surface where chance discovery
or targeted searches bring it to the
PALEOCENE 66 mya attention of scientists.

MASS EXTINCTION 3. Fossilization

MESOZOIC cretaceous 145.5mya Over a very long time, minerals
252–66 MYA seep into the animal’s bones,
jurassic 199.6 mya first birds turning them to stone.

triassic 252 mya first mammals age of
permian dinosaurs
MASS EXTINCTION reptiles spiders
insects
299 mya
fishes
carboniferous 360 mya

PALEOZOIC devonian 416 mya

silurian 443 mya

land plants

ordovician 488.3 mya

cambrian 542 mya trilobytes jawless fish
charnia
PRE-CAMBRIAN proterozoic 2.5 bya

archean stromatolites

Hadean

EARTH FORMATION















cranial crests Horns & frills

Parasaurolophus (77–73 mya) lived alongside the During the late Cretaceous, North America was home Why did they have fancy frills?
Ceratopsids, but was not closely related to them. It was to a diverse family of dinosaurs with wildly elaborate The most likely explanation is that
a hadrosaur, or duck-billed dinosaur, and had a beak-like arrays of horns and bony frills on their the ornate headgear was to attract
mouth and a tall crest on the back of its skull. skulls. These were the Ceratopsids. The most mates. Both males and females had
Hadrosaurs were descendants of the famous family member was Triceratops, but them and a good display showed
iguanodonts (see page 000). There were there were dozens of different species, each that an individual was healthy and a
many species, and fossils have been with their own amazing line-up of horns and frills. good partner to choose.
found on every continent.
Styracosaurus
The crest was 75 Mya
used for display,
or to tell other
dinosaurs about an
individual’s species
and sex. It may also
have been used to
amplify calls.

The crest was hollow, The size of a rabbit, The Ceratopsids were divided into
with tubes running from Aquilops was one of two groups. The Chasmosaurines had
the nostrils to the top the first American long, triangular frills and big horns on
of the crest and back. ceratopsians. their brows. The Centrosaurines had
rectangular frills with spikes and big
thick heads Styracosaurus Had one horns on their noses.
of the most impressive
Pachycephalosaurus (72–66 mya) means “thick-headed” and displays. Each individual
these plant-eating dinosaurs had bony domes on their heads was slightly different.
that were at least 25 cm (10 inches) thick. Just one species
is known from fossils found in Montana, South Dakota Kosmosceratops Aquilops
and Wyoming. 84–71 Mya 108–104 Mya

Male Pachycephalosaurs Wendiceratops Centrosaurus Chasmosaurus
used their thick 79–78 Mya 76–75 Mya 83–70 Mya
skulls in head-butting
contests during the
mating season.

16 NORTH AMERICA Utahceratops Einosaurus Albertaceratops
76-75 Mya 84–72 Mya 83–76 Mya

Hellboy (Regaliceratops)
Lived: USA, 68 mya
Length: 5 m (16.4 ft)
Weight: 1.5 tonnes (3300 lb)
Diet: Plants

;
He b is
ne p e f at d
di ur t lo re d o
T i r o s hu ny l s
to d h ik ke c n, a
it d e h or n
2 k (5 l ).

17

quetzalcoatlus

This giant predatory pterosaur stalked its prey on the plains
of North America for four million years. Moving stealthily on all
fours, it used its fearsome beak to snap up smaller reptiles, like
baby triceratopses. Quetzalcoatlus was equally at home in the
sky, where it soared on currents of air like an outsize hang glider.

Quetzalcoatlus

Pterosaurs around the world Lived: North America, 71–66 mya

Pterosaurs were flying reptiles that lived alongside the Size: Wingspan: 10–12 m (33–39 ft)
dinosaurs. The two groups were close cousins that evolved
on separate branches of the reptile family tree. Weight: Disputed, but probably about
250 kg (550 lb)
Sordes was a small
pterosaur from late- Diet: Small dinosaurs & other
Jurassic Kazakhstan. reptiles

Sordes Some scientists think that
84–71 Mya Quetzalcoatlus was too heavy
to fly, but most believe that it
Jeholopterus lived could vault into the air using its
in China. It is known powerful limbs. Once airborne,
as the “vampire it could soar and glide at speeds
pterosaur” because of up to 90 kph (56 mph).
it may have
sucked the blood At first, paleontologists
of dinosaurs. thought that Quetzalcoatlus
Jeholopterus fed on fish by skimming the
160 Mya surface of the sea, like many
smaller pterosaurs. However,
Quetzalcoatlus was far too big
to hunt this way. Scientists
now think that it hunted on
the ground.

Thalassodromeus
100 Mya
Thalassodromeus lived
in Brazil. It had a huge
crest on its skull and
toothless jaws.

18 NORTH AMERICA

Nyctosaurus was about Nyctosaurus
the size of a modern bald Lived: North America, 85–65 mya
eagle. Like bald eagles, it Size: Wingspan: 3 m (10 ft)
fed on fish and anything Weight: About 9 kg (20 lb)
else it could scrounge. Diet: Fish

Nyctosaurus Nyctosaurus had
85-65 Mya a large v-shaped
head crest.

Quetzalcoatlus belonged ;_ _ _ _ _ _ _ Pteranodon
to a family of Cretaceous Ov ,0 p e n o f l av 85-65 Mya
pterosaurs called azhdarchids. be un , k it o t s
These were the largest flying k o n r a s e m ha r
reptiles, and probably the he r s, ob us ri
biggest animals ever to take to co s an r or is s.
the skies. ________

; In flight, the pteranodon
moved like an albatross,
Qu l o l soaring on air currents
is d o t te d and only flapping its
Qu l o l, “t e t e d wings occasionally.
se n ”. n a t , i l
p e s u , Q al lu d Pteranodon
Lived: North America, 85–65 mya
ha at s Size: Wingspan: 7 m (23 ft)
Weight: Disputed, probably about 40 kg (88 lb)
Diet: Fish

Quetzalcoatlus stood as tall as a
giraffe. Its wingspan of 10–12 metres

(33–39 feet), was as large as that
of a light aircraft.

19

Moving Continents south america Eodromaeus
237–228 Mya

LATE TRIASSIC 226 Mya

P A NG South America has some of the oldest dinosaur fossils.
A Paleontologists believe that the first dinosaurs evolved
E 152 Mya here during the Late Triassic, at least 240 million years ;
A ago. At that time all the land on Earth was united in a
supercontinent called Pangaea. Early dinosaurs were So me wa
LATE JURASSIC L A U R A S I A free to roam all over. When Pangaea split in two about ho ma t e r t
200 million years ago, dinosaurs in the northern Laurasia di ur h ve wa d
began to evolve in different ways from those in the E r Ti sa l e g in u s,
southern Gondwana. D e n u t d u l ko us

al v er

GONDWANA Titanosaurs
Named for a battleship, Dreadnoughtus was at least six
medium-large car lengths long and weighed more than 12 Futalognkosaurus
African elephants. Futalognkosaurus was even longer. 93–85 Mya

LATE CRETACEOUS A U R A S I A 70 Mya

L

GONDWANA Eoraptor Dreadnoughtus
231–228 Mya 84–66 Mya
The orange lands marked on the Riojasaurus
maps above show what is now South 228–208 Mya Austroraptor
America. During the Triassic and 85–66 Mya
Jurassic periods, South America was
joined to Africa. The two continents Southern raptor
have many dinosaurs in common. Austroraptor had the dromaeosaur’s
trademark and deadly sickle-shaped
dinorama - know it all! claw on its hind limbs. It differs from
other raptors in that its teeth and jaws
Top 10 South America Dinosaur Facts & Records suggest that it hunted fish as well as small
mammals and pterosaurs. Austraptor had a
1. WORLD’S BIGGEST DINOSAUR 4. DINOSAUR WITH LONG NECK SPIKES 7. REPTILES THAT DIDN’T LAY EGGS covering of feathers.
Argentinosaurus. Estimates Amargasaurus. Had forward- Ichthyosaurs. These marine
very, but it was up to 40 metres facing, 60-cm (24-in) long spikes reptiles gave birth to live young. ;_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
(131 ft) long. That’s about 9 car on its neck. At re (1 f ) lo n ig g o 0 k
lengths! 8. REPTILES THAT ARE THE (6 l ), A s ra r t e r t om o in
2. LARGEST CARNIVOROUS DINOSAUR 5. BRAZILIAN PTEROSAURS WITH t e t e n s er , n a w Da ra r
IN SOUTH AMERICA ANCESTORS OF MODERN MAMMALS Ut p o n t A r a
Giganotosaurus. Bigger and LARGE BONY HEAD CRESTS ____________
faster than T-Rex, this scary Cynodonts. Lived 260–176 mya.
predator lived 30 million years Caiuajara. Massive bonebed
before its famous cousin. found in 1971 but not reported 9. STRANGEST DINOSAUR NAME
3. EARLIEST RECOGNISED DINOSAUR until 2011. Described in 2015. Irritator. Named because
IN SOUTH AMERICA scientists were “irritated” by
Eoraptor, or “dawn thief”. 6. DINOSAUR NAMED FOR A fossil dealers who had added
cement to its nose.
BATTLESHIP
10. TITANOSAURUS COVERED ALL
Dreadnoughtus. It was so So big
it took 4 summers to dig up the OVER WITH BONY BODY PLATES
skeleton.
Saltosaurus.

20 SOUTH AMERICA

























The Giant Mongolian pterosaur found ;_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Microraptor was tiny— Microraptor
in the Gobi Desert may have been as Mi r or d 2 m i n e r te op ’s about the size of a pigeon. 125–113 Mya
large as Quetzalcoatlus (see Ar op x. n i t l e h in u s ve t It had four wings and
pages 00–00). _bi -_li _r a _ s _o _t _on _ r_i t_ _so _ . _ feathers.

Giant Mongolian Kulindadromeus Dilong Kamuysaurus
pterosaur 174–145 Mya 128–127 Mya 72–70 Mya
About 70 Mya Timurlenga Anchiornis
94–90 Mya 168–151 Mya
;_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Ve ra r ma mo t e r ic k Velociraptor
fil . H er, d ’t i n o t ri , t i 75–71 Mya
t e b e r Mo l a r i s co d
in 9 s.
___________

Tyrannosaurid Lingwulong Shantungosaurus
161–167 Mya About 174 Mya 80–66 Mya
Barapasarus
199–183 Mya Isanosaurus Lufengosaurus
Mamenchisaurus About 210 Mya 201–191 Mya
163–140 Mya Anchiornis had feathers,
Alwalkeria four wings and was about
237–208 Mya the size of a crow. One
of the earliest bird-like
dinosaurs, it is very well
known because so many
fossils have been found.

Cartorhynchus Alwalkeria was a very
About 248 Mya early dinosaur
from India. It ate
Early “fish lizards” insects, small
Cartorhynchus was only about 40 cm vertebrates
(16 in) long and lived at the beginning and plants.
of the Triassic. It was an early form of Cartorhynchus had flippers
ichthyosaur (“fish lizard” in Greek). that may also have been
used for walking on land.

33

feathered dinosaurs social lives

Most dinosaur fossils are of hard bones and teeth but As researchers realised that dinosaurs were a lot
occasionally fossils of soft body parts are found. the discovery like modern birds, they began to look for evidence of
in China of many small theropod dinosaurs with feathers was similar behaviour. We know that many dinosaurs lived
a stunning breakthrough. Paleontologists had proof that these together in groups and some nested in
extinct dinosaurs looked very like living birds, supporting the huge colonies. Fossilised tracks
theory that birds are small, flying dinosaurs. show that individuals walked
together, perhaps in family
Sinosauropteryx groups or hunting parties.
163–140 Mya
What a sight!
Sinosauropteryx, Gigantoraptor looked like a very large bird,
discovered in Liaoning in although scientists aren’t sure if it had a full
1996, was the first dinosaur covering of feathers. The male and female
found with feathers. Its gigantoraptors may have danced together in
feathers were primitive mating rituals like those of modern birds.
and more like fuzz or hair
than modern bird feathers.
They also revealed that
Sinosauropteryx was
probably orange with a
stripy tail.

Caudipteryx
130–122 Mya
Caudipteryx was also found in
Liaoning. It was about the size
of a peacock and its feathers
were like those of modern birds.
The feathers on its arms and tail
were long although it could not
fly. They were used for warmth
and to attract mates.

Yutyrannus Yutyrannus was a
130–113 Mya tryrannosaurid dinosaur
from Liaoning and a
34 ASIA primitive cousin of
Tyrannosaurus rex. At
10 metres (33 ft) long and
3 metres (10 ft) tall, it is
the largest feathered
dinosaur ever found.

Gigantoraptor’s large Gigantoraptor
horny beak was toothless, Lived: Arid and semi-arid habitats,
ideal for crushing and
grinding tough plant 83–70 mya
material. Size: 8 m (26 ft) long, 5 m (16 ft)

tall
Weight: Up to 3.6 tonnes (4 tons)
Diet: Probably herbivorous

Giganotoraptor was an Oviraptorsaur but was huge A male Gigantoraptor
compared to others in the group. stamps his feet and shakes
his brightly coloured neck
plumes as he tries to
impress a female enough to
mate with him.

The three young Oviraptors were found in the
Gobi Desert, in Mongolia, in 2017. Since then,
others have also been found.

Snuggling siblings
The fossilised remains of three Oviraptor youngsters were found
huddled together. They were all the same age and probably siblings
or cousins snuggling up for warmth when they died. This suggests
that some dinosaurs, like many birds, roosted together in groups for
warmth and company.

35

nesting sites

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing Therizinosaurus
elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et Lived: Mongolia, 70 mya
dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis Length: Up to 18 m (59 ft)
nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip Weight: Up to 7500 kg (16,500 lb)
ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in Diet: Plants
reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore
eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat
cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia
deserunt mollit anim id est laborum..

36 ASIA

Gigantoraptor claw Giant Therizinosaurus claw eggs and babies
Scientists have puzzled The sawfishes were also feared predators.
about the purpose of Their eyes were positioned on the top of their Today the island of Madagascar lies off the coast of Africa but during
Spinosaurus’ sail ever skulls so they could spot prey. Their teeth were most of the Mesozoic it was connected to India. Fossils are quite
since it was discovered. barbed to stop prey escaping. different from those in Africa, and the dinosaurs excavated here have
Some think it was for more in common with those from India. There are also some unique
display, to attract a species that have only been discovered on the island.
partner at mating time.
Others think it was Embyros in eggs
used to regulate body Pisanosaurus is known from a
temperature, or to store very incomplete skeleton found
energy as fat for use in in Argentina in 1962. At first
lean times. scientists thought it was
an early dinosaur, but
now they think it is a
silesaurid, or close
relative of the
first dinosaurs.

Sordes
84–71 Mya

Brooding without squashing
Pisanosaurus is known from a very incomplete skeleton found in
Argentina in 1962. At first scientists thought it was an early dinosaur, but
now they think it is a silesaurid, or close relative of the first dinosaurs.

; Colourful eggs
Pisanosaurus is known from a very incomplete skeleton
T e s m et found in Argentina in 1962. At first scientists thought it was
s e s u s et in an early dinosaur, but now they think it is a silesaurid, or
Na l i t us i L n. close relative of the first dinosaurs.
Af t o ly w So , s e s
he d en t ar t a t e

ma v e t e

37