Herbivore dinosaurs were one of the most amazing groups of animals to ever walk the Earth. They ranged from small two-legged creatures to big, long-necked four-legged giants.
They ate different types of plants, including leaves, flowers, fruit, and stems. Herbivore dinosaurs also had special teeth and digestive systems that were perfect for grinding plant matter and digesting cellulose.
Brachiosaurus
During the Late Jurassic period, about 150 million to 130 million years ago, Brachiosaurus was a herbivore dinosaur that lived in North America. It was part of the sauropod family, which includes giant plant-eaters with long necks, long tails and a four-legged stance.
Brachiosaurus was one of the largest of these dinosaurs, weighing as much as 50 tons (33-55 tons) and standing up to 49ft (15 meters) high. It had a long, flexible neck that helped it eat leaves from trees at a very high level.
Because of its size and the quality of its forage, scientists think that Brachiosaurus spent a lot of time feeding. They estimate that Brachiosaurus ate about 1.5% of its body weight every day. This compares to the daily food requirements of a modern elephant.
Although it was considered to be a water-dweller, recent evidence suggests that Brachiosaurus was a fully terrestrial animal. This is because the huge corresponding nasal openings in its skull were on top of the head, not below it as was once believed.
This allowed the animal to breathe easily while intaking feeds and also facilitated it to navigate around its surroundings. In addition, these features lent to the animals ability to get up into trees, where they could browse for food, as other sauropods do today.
Despite their large size, Brachiosaurus stayed healthy by eating a variety of plants. It favored leaves and other vegetation from high up in the trees, as well as branches and lower-growing trees and bushes.
Another adaptation that enabled Brachiosaurus to reach into the treetops was its long forelimbs, which were longer than its hind legs. This gave it a strong grip on the tree trunks and branches as it tried to snip off leaves.
These forelimbs are thought to have evolved because Brachiosaurus needed to be able to reach up into the treetops where it could find more complex plants. This was a good idea for a dinosaur that weighed over 50 tons and was capable of eating more than 400 pounds (200 kg) of leaves per day.
Diplodocus
Diplodocus, or “dolphin-necked dinosaur,” was a herbivorous sauropod that inhabited North America in the Jurassic period. It grew to be about 90 feet long and had a sweeping neck and whip-like tail that ran down its back.
It was one of the longest known dinosaurs and was a member of the Diplodocidae family. It is considered to be the most studied sauropod dinosaur because of its extensive skeletal remains and abundant fossils.
Scientists have analyzed the scleral rings, unique eye bones and other features that allow them to better understand how these animals behaved in their environment. They have also found evidence that suggests these herbivores lived a cathermal lifestyle, which means they had a shortened sleep cycle and ate at irregular intervals.
They also had a very high tooth-replacement rate, which is unusual for sauropods but suggests that they may have been eating abrasive plants that required a lot of force to chew. It’s also thought that they were probably social animals and may have roamed in herds, which could have helped protect them from predators.
Researchers think that Diplodocus could have had a very flexible neck, which could have allowed it to flex its head to the side and up and down to reach low-lying vegetation on the ground. It is also thought that it may have used its neck to lift itself up into the air to scavenge for food on trees.
The snout of Diplodocus was very elongate, like that of an elephant, and its nostrils sat at the top of its snout rather than at the end. It was thought that this feature would have made it difficult for it to hold its head up off the ground, but a 2014 study suggests that Diplodocus’ neck was very flexible.
Its feet were five-toed, with a toe on each foot that had a claw that was much larger than the others. Experts do not know what this claw did for Diplodocus, or why it was so large compared to other sauropods.
It was a very fast-growing animal, reaching sexual maturity at about 10 years of age and living to be over 80 years old. It was also able to reproduce by laying eggs, which were small compared to its size.
Stegosaurus
Stegosaurus was a herbivore dinosaur that grew up to be large and had bony plates on its back. It also had a tail that had spikes on it, which were used in defense against predators like Allosaurus and Pteranodon.
Stegosaurs lived about 150.8 to 155.7 million years ago, at the end of the Upper Jurassic Period. They inhabited semi-dry areas of land that had alternating wet and dry seasons.
They mainly ate low-lying herbs and vegetation, such as ferns, mosses, cycads, conifers and horsetails. They also ate fruits and other fallen produce.
The stegosaur’s small head and short neck allowed it to reach up to low-lying plants. It would then eat with its mouth, using its weak beak to chew on the plant material.
Its long, flexible tail had a number of sharp, pointed spikes that could be swung upward from the ends. Fossils of a Stegosaurus’s main predator, Allosaurus, have puncture wounds along the side of their tailbones from these spikes, which indicate that they were used in defense.
In addition, stegosaurs had a special kind of plate that formed on their back, called a thagomizer. These spikes were about the same length as the tallest dorsal plate on a stegosaur’s back, and they arranged themselves in a staggered pattern.
Various studies have shown that some of these plates were used to attract mates. But others suggest that they were more protective, and that the plates absorbed heat from the sun to keep the dinosaur warm.
Another possible use for the plates is to help Stegosaurus identify itself, as different species of stegosaurs have slightly differently-shaped plates. This may have helped them recognize the adults in their herds, and it might have even protected them from predators.
As a result, stegosaurs often formed herds that roamed in semi-forest areas. These herds were made up of juveniles that stuck close to the adults when traveling.
Juvenile stegosaurs can be easily identified by the plates on their backs. These can start out as little rounded nubs and grow to full-sized pentagons by the time they are adults. In newer stock of stegosaurs, however, the plates are not fully-formed at birth, and they only reach their full size by late in the adult stage.
Triceratops
Triceratops was a large herbivore dinosaur that lived in the Late Cretaceous. It was one of the largest animals to ever live on land, and it’s most famous for its three horns and armoured frill.
The name Triceratops means ‘three-horned face’, and it was named for its three horns, which were shaped like a crown. It also had a frill of bone that curved around its head. The frill was used to warn other dinosaurs of danger, but it also may have served as a sexual signal.
Although the Triceratops is commonly depicted as a fierce and aggressive dinosaur, the fossil evidence suggests that these creatures were very social and gregarious. In fact, scientists have discovered a number of triceratops “bonebeds,” which are collections of multiple juvenile Triceratops remains together.
These findings support the idea that these animals were herding dinosaurs. The herds’ behavior would have required them to keep a close eye on each other, especially when it came to predators.
Another defining feature of these dinosaurs was their teeth, which were very unique. Unlike most other dinosaurs, these species had double rooted teeth that were arranged in groups called dental batteries. These teeth were specialized for shearing tough vegetation, and they could shear with precision and a great deal of force.
In addition to their horns, these dinosaurs had long, powerful jaws that were designed to cut down tough grass and other plants. They also had rows of stacked teeth, which allowed them to chew and swallow food efficiently.
The teeth of Triceratops were particularly hard, and they were able to shear in a way that made them similar to scissors. They were able to slice through tough grass, and they were also strong enough to break bones when necessary.
These traits helped Triceratops survive in the harsh environment of the Cretaceous period. It was one of the most common herbivores in North America during its time, and it inhabited a variety of ecological niches.
There are currently two known species of Triceratops: Triceratops horridus and Triceratops prorsus. These dinosaurs are thought to be descendants of an earlier Triceratops, which split into two different species during a process called cladogenesis.