About Famous Dinosaurs
Some dinosaurs became especially famous because their fossils are dramatic, their body shapes are easy to recognize, or they played important roles in the history of paleontology. Famous does not always mean common, and our scientific picture of these animals keeps changing as new fossils are discovered.
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Tyrannosaurus rex
T. rex is one of the most studied giant theropods.
Learn MoreTriceratops
Triceratops lived alongside T. rex near the end of the Cretaceous.
Learn MoreStegosaurus
Stegosaurus is famous for its plates and four-spiked tail.
Learn MoreAllosaurus
Allosaurus is one of the best-known Jurassic predators.
Learn MoreApatosaurus
Apatosaurus helped create the classic image of the long-necked dinosaur.
Learn MoreParasaurolophus
Parasaurolophus had a long, tube-like crest extending from its skull.
Learn MoreVelociraptor
Velociraptor became far larger in popular culture than it was in real life.
Learn MoreBirds
Living birds are the only dinosaurs that survived to the present day.
Learn MoreTyrannosaurus rex
The first named fossils of Tyrannosaurus rex were described in the early twentieth century. Since then, multiple skeletons have allowed scientists to study growth, injuries, senses, bite forces, and variation between individuals.
Triceratops
Its skull could grow enormous, with a beak, brow horns, a nose horn, and a broad frill. Fossils are common enough that paleontologists can compare young and adult animals and study how the skull changed during growth.
Stegosaurus
It lived during the Late Jurassic, tens of millions of years before T. rex. Its body was large, but its skull was relatively small. The arrangement and biology of the plates remain subjects of scientific study.
Allosaurus
Many fossils have been found in the western United States, including large bonebeds. Because there are specimens of different ages, researchers can study growth and variation across the species.
Apatosaurus
It belonged to the sauropods of the Morrison Formation. Historical confusion with the name Brontosaurus became one of paleontology's most famous naming stories, though Brontosaurus is now again recognized by many researchers as a separate genus.
Parasaurolophus
The crest contained hollow passages connected to the breathing system. Computer models and fossil anatomy suggest it may have helped produce low-frequency calls, while also serving as a visual display feature.
Velociraptor
The actual dinosaur was a relatively small, feathered dromaeosaur from Mongolia. A spectacular fossil nicknamed the Fighting Dinosaurs preserves a Velociraptor locked with a Protoceratops, providing rare evidence of direct interaction.
Birds
Modern evolutionary studies place birds within theropod dinosaurs. Features such as feathers, wishbones, hollow bones, three-toed feet, nesting behavior, and air-filled bones connect birds with their dinosaur ancestors.