{"id":42185,"date":"2024-10-03T14:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-10-03T12:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/3d025bd3-6e54-4685-994c-01b446cd547a"},"modified":"2024-10-03T15:27:26","modified_gmt":"2024-10-03T13:27:26","slug":"are-dinosaurs-lizards","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/are-dinosaurs-lizards\/","title":{"rendered":"Are dinosaurs lizards?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Why, despite looking like lizards, dinosaurs aren’t lizards <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Thursday, 03 October 2024 at 12:30 PM<\/p>

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While both dinosaurs and lizards look similar and belong to the reptile family – and the word dinosaur stems from the Greek for \u2018terrible lizard\u2019 – dinosaurs aren\u2019t lizards. <\/strong><\/p>

Dinosaurs belong to a group called Archosauria<\/em>, which also includes crocodilians and birds. Lizards, on the other hand, belong to a different group known as Lepidosauria<\/em>, which also includes snakes and the tuatara.<\/p>

Lepidosaurs and archosaurs share a common ancestor, but they diverged early in the Mesozoic Era, likely during the Triassic period, over 230 million years ago. While lizards and dinosaurs both evolved from earlier reptiles, their evolutionary paths branched off long before dinosaurs came to dominate the Earth.<\/p>

What’s the difference between dinosaurs and lizards?<\/h2>

This distinction is based on anatomical features, notably the legs. <\/p>

A lizard\u2019s legs stick out at right angles from its body, producing a sprawling stance, whereas a dinosaur\u2019s legs are tucked underneath. <\/p>

Why do lizards run on two legs?<\/a><\/p>

Keeping a big reptile upright requires strong joints between the hips and backbone, which the ancestors of dinosaurs made by fusing together vertebrae to form a modified structure \u2013 the sacrum.<\/p>

Discover more fascinating facts about the dinosaurs<\/strong><\/p>