14 recent discoveries that have changed the way we think about dinosaurs

Marianne GuenotSep 4, 2022, 16:55 IST

An artist's reconstruction of a Mussaurus patagonicus nest.Jorge Gonzalez

Dinosaurs died 66 million years ago but scientists are still learning more about them.
A slew of recent papers has provided new clues about their lives and behavior.

Paleontologists are still discovering new information about dinosaurs, even 66 million years after they were wiped out.

Here are 14 things that we've learned through a slew of recent reports shedding new light on their biology, their lives, and the world around them.

Tyrannosaurus rexes walked about as fast as humans did.

A T. rex is seen at a screening of the "Jurassic World: Dominion" prologue.Universal Studios

T. rexes could go faster, but at a big risk.

A T. Rex skeleton at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.Antonio Perez /Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

Early dinosaurs laid soft-shelled eggs — a discovery that shattered our understanding of their evolution.

The clutch of fossilized Protoceratops eggs and embryos examined in this study was discovered in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia at Ukhaa Tolgod.M. Ellison/©AMNH

As many as 2.5 billion T. rexes may have roamed the Earth.

An artist's depiction of a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex.Julius T. Csotonyi

Fossilized dinosaur nests provided a peek into the animals' social life.

An artist's reconstruction of a Mussaurus patagonicus nest.Jorge Gonzalez

mussasaurus eggs patagonia

A fossilized egg of Mussaurus patagonicus that's 192 million years old, found in southern Patagonia, Argentina.Roger Smith

mussasaurus eggs patagonia

Nest with eggs of Mussaurus patagonicus dated to 192 million years ago, found in southern Patagonia, Argentina.Diego Pol

A baby T. rex was small and fuzzy and the size of a large turkey.

A T rex hatchling.R. Peterson / © AMNH

T. rexes were not the only 'armless' dinosaurs

Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

Another big, meat-eating dinosaur had tiny arms.

Meraxes gigas.Jorge A. Gonzales

An illustration shows Meraxes gigas running.

Meraxes gigas.Carlos Papolio

Three types of dinosaurs evolved independently to have tiny arms

The bones found at the dig for Meraxes gigas are shown in white.Canale and colleagues, Current Biology (2022)

That means the arms likely had a function. What it was, however, remains a mystery.

Juan Ignocio Canales stands next to a reconstruction of Meraxes Gigas' skull bones.Courtesy of Juan Ignacio Canales

An incredibly rich fossil site was found in the US, and became guarded fiercely.

A meteor impact 66 million years ago generated a tsunami-like wave in an inland sea that killed and buried fish, mammals, insects and a dinosaur.Graphic courtesy of Robert DePalma

The skin of a triceratops is seen in location in Tanis, North Dakota.

The skin of a triceratops, perfectly preserved in this fossil found at the Tanis site, is being filmed by the BBC documentary crew.BBC Studios/Eric Burge

fragments from the impact of the meteorite can be seen encased in dirt.

Spherules are seen in sediment.BBC Studios/Ali Pares

But the discovery has been shrouded in mystery.

Tanis dig-leader Robert De Palma talks with a colleague.BBC / Tom Traies

A newly-discovered species of dinosaur was the first with a peculiar 'war club' tail

A model of the stegouros in Santiago, Chile, Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2021.(AP Photo/Esteban Felix)

This cute dinosaur was brown and science can prove it.

The skeleton of a Psittacosaurus dinosaur at the Grand Palais Museum in ParisReuters

Photos show how NASA built a $50 billion mega-rocket and spaceship to return astronauts to the moon for the first time in 50 years

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14 recent discoveries that have changed the way we think about dinosaurs

Tyrannosaurus rexes walked about as fast as humans did.

T. rexes could go faster, but at a big risk.

Early dinosaurs laid soft-shelled eggs — a discovery that shattered our understanding of their evolution.

As many as 2.5 billion T. rexes may have roamed the Earth.

Fossilized dinosaur nests provided a peek into the animals' social life.

mussasaurus eggs patagonia

mussasaurus eggs patagonia

A baby T. rex was small and fuzzy and the size of a large turkey.

T. rexes were not the only 'armless' dinosaurs

Another big, meat-eating dinosaur had tiny arms.

An illustration shows Meraxes gigas running.

Three types of dinosaurs evolved independently to have tiny arms

That means the arms likely had a function. What it was, however, remains a mystery.

An incredibly rich fossil site was found in the US, and became guarded fiercely.

The skin of a triceratops is seen in location in Tanis, North Dakota.

fragments from the impact of the meteorite can be seen encased in dirt.

But the discovery has been shrouded in mystery.

A newly-discovered species of dinosaur was the first with a peculiar 'war club' tail

This cute dinosaur was brown and science can prove it.