At a mere eight inches long, mussaurus is the smallest dinosaur ever found by paleontologists. This dino had a long neck for its size, ate plants and tried to stay out of the way of numerous predators that could swallow it up. There's a debate whether this dino's fossils were babies, meaning adults would have been much bigger. The answer may never be known. Most scientists also think that this mini-saur was the ancestor of the biggest dinos of all time!
Baby Face: The only mussaurus fossils found have been those that are so small-they measure just eight inches long-that some think they might be babies or juveniles. This small creature had huge eyes, probably so it could spot potential enemies easily and run away.
Smartmouth: A look at mussaurus' jaws might have lead you to believe that this dinosaur was the smallest meat-eater in the Mesozoic Era. Though the dino had sharp teeth, it used them to shred leaves from small plants, like its descendants did.
One Small Step[]
This dino was so small its skull fits on a fingertip.
Mussaurus stands as both the smallest dino ever found, and also as a direct link to some of the biggest dinosaurs that ever lived. This creature was a vegetarian, had a long neck and short legs, and its skull was almost identical in shape to those of the great sauropods. Scientists believe that this tiny dino was an ancestor to dinos such as apatosaurus and brachiosaurus-some of the biggest dinosaurs to ever walk the Earth! Mussaurus was obviously smaller, and it could also run fast, unlike its gigantic descendants.
More Family: Remains of dinos known as Coloradisaurs were found near Mussaurus fossils, leading scientists to think that they might be adults of the same species. If correct, mussaurus would have reached lengths up to 10 feet-still fairly small for a dinosaur.
Rear Drive: Mussaurus' front legs were much shorter than its back legs, giving the creature a slumped posture. This also makes experts think that the dino could have reared up on its hind legs to reach higher leaves and run fast from enemies.
Timeline[]
Mussaurus lived about 220 million years ago, during the Triassic Period.
Trivia[]
- The card says that Mussaurus is the smallest dinosaur ever found, as adults could possibly grow up to 10 feet.
- This is the only non-sauropod sauropodomorph in the Weird 'N Wild Creatures franchise.
- The mussaurus is featured on several cards:
- It is first featured in The Real Deal on Monster Mania 62.
- It is then featured in Big & Small on Monster Mania 83.
- It is later featured in the back Create-A-Caption Contest on Monster Mania 88.