Dinosaurs that were able to dive freely into the water to feed were very capable. Their ability to forage and hunt in the water was more survivable than dinosaurs, whose could only get food on land. Once they cannot find enough food on land to continue their family and their own life, they will come to rivers or lakes to dive into the water and prey on fish or small aquatic animals.

Because of their amphibious ability to survive both in water and on land, they were able to live longer than terrestrial dinosaurs during the mass extinction of the Earth. Even some of the dinosaurs that stayed in the water for a long time slowly degraded into a class of Marine animals after the age of dinosaurs; Others slowly evolved feathers and wings, becoming the ancestors of birds and poultry that live today.

Today, we are going to list the top 10 amphibious dinosaurs that lived on land for dinosaur fans. Get to know these masters who can dive and hunt!

Spinosaurus

Just a few years ago, paleontologists published a paper in Nature called “Subaqueous foraging among carnivorous dinosaurs,” Adding new fossil evidence to the idea that Spinosaurs spent a lot of time in water (hydrophilic), lead author Matteo Fabbri, a paleontologist at the Field Museum of Natural History. In fact, the idea that Spinosaurus went fishing and spent all day in the water is not new, and when Spinosaurus’ tail was discovered and announced in early 2020, its tendency to go in the water and stay in the water for a long time was confirmed, so this study is a icing on the cake, not a game-changer.

By cutting bones, scanning them, and analyzing them, paleontologists got a lot of data. Sure enough, Spinosaurus had a bone density of 0.968., about the same as penguins, and was undoubtedly a good swimmer. It was the dinosaur that liked to stay in water the most. Ever since Spinosaurus was discovered, fossil evidence and studies have continued to show that they were an anomaly in the dinosaur family, the super-fishermen of the Cretaceous.

Baryonyx

It was similar in appearance and presumably similar in behavior to Suchomimus, and the data available to measure its bone density were astounding. It also has a bone density of more than 0.9, apparently a new member of the Cretaceous diving club, and spends most of its time in the water. It is because of this data that the tail silhouette of the skeletal diagram of the heavy claw in the paper becomes much wider, which is the “paddle” for propulsion in the water.

Although not as large as Spinosaurus, it is the most well-known Spinosaurus species. It had a long, narrow crocodilian-like skull, conical teeth, and large thumb claws, and fed mainly on fish.

Suchomimus

Suchomimus was a large dinosaur found in Africa, estimated to have reached 12 meters in length and weighed about 3 tons. Suchomimus had long narrow skulls and dense conical teeth. The vertebrae of the suchiosaurian spine were arched posteriorly and had a very developed epiphysis for attaching muscles. The length of the forelimbs is significantly shorter than the length of the hind limbs, and the hands have developed finger claws. The diet of Suchomimus and Baryonyx is the same, both are based on fish as the main food.

Halszkaraptor

It’s not just the heavy-clawed dinosaurs that are surprising, but also the bone density of many dinosaurs, such as Halszkaraptor. The study found that the bone density of Halszkaraptor was only 0.493, which is no different from that of other land dinosaurs, and it has the nickname “Cretaceous yellow duck”, so at least the bone density cannot support that it was a dinosaur that spent a lot of time in water and was good at diving.

When scientists compared its fossils with those of modern crocodilians and waterbirds, they found morphological evidence that Halszkaraptor was an amphibian. Halszkaraptor was about the size of a mallard duck. The head is about 7cm long, the neck 12cm, the back 13cm, and the sacral 5cm.

Liaoningosaurus

This amazing ornithischian dinosaur is called Liaoningosaurus paradoxus, a member of the Ankylosaurid family Ankylosauridae. The discovery was made in the Yixian, Liaoning Province, China, about 122 million years ago. It has features of both Ankylosaurinae and Nodosaurinae.

To eat fish, it must be a good underwater skill. Some of the body structures of Liaoningosaurus also show that the dinosaur was adept at moving around underwater. Liaoningosaurus’ belt is loosely connected, allowing it to move more flexibly underwater. The nails on the front and back limbs of Liaoningosaurus were also sharper than those of other Ankylosaurs, which may have made it easier to tear prey. It even had a feature not found in other Ankylosaurs: its belly deck evolved into a shield that protected its belly body from underwater attack.

Sarcosuchus

It’s an extinct crocodilians. They lived in Africa during the Early Cretaceous period and were among the largest crocodilians that ever lived. Not only that, the Sarcosuchus’s sense of smell is extremely sensitive, even in the water can smell the prey, coupled with the large mouth full of sharp teeth, is a small dinosaur will become its mouth in an instant.

The eye sockets of the Sarcosuchus are slightly upward, indicating that the animal probably spent most of its time immersed in water, observing prey on the shore. They seem to have fed on large Cretaceous fish and tortoises. Their main prey was probably large animals and smaller dinosaurs that lurked in the water and dragged their prey into the water, crushing, drowning and tearing it apart.

Pyroraptor

Pyroraptor was a feathered, bird-like, carnivorous paravian dinosaur that lived in France in Europe during the late Cretaceous period. Pyroraptor had extremely sharp teeth and claws, was about nine feet long and weighed 70 kilograms. In addition to its sharp teeth and powerful jaws, the second toe of the Pyroraptor had big claws that could kill any prey.

Pyroraptor have also been known to forage in some shoals or lakes. They watch the movement of small fish or turtles in the water, and look for opportunities to dive into the water to catch fish and other prey. It can be said that over the long years, they also evolved to survive in the water to feed.

Ichthyornis

Ichthyornis is an extinct bird that lived in North America during the Cretaceous period, and its fossils have been found in Alberta, Saskatchewan in Canada, Alabama, Kansas, New Mexico, and Texas in the United States. The Ichthyornis had teeth growing in its jaws, and some scientists in the past classified it as a reptilian mosasaur, and later as a bird ichthyoid. The size and habits of the modern gulls are very similar. Ichthyornis lived 67 million years ago. They were small, with powerful wings and high flying abilities. It has a long mouth with teeth and often flies quickly over the ocean to hunt fish.

Hesperornis

Hesperornis is a bird that lived in the Mesozoic era and is now extinct. The duskerbird has a smooth, feathered body, long legs and webbed feet.They live in temperate seas and come ashore to breed. It is a typical representative of Hesperornithes.

Some scholars believe that the Hesperornis must slide their abdomens to move on land, are clumsy on the shore, and because their paddle-shaped feet are suitable for swimming and diving, they probably lived in the water most of the time. Although there are some smaller species of Hesperornis that may be capable of flight, most other species are not capable of flight because their wings have deteriorated.

They are fast swimmers, making short dives to catch fish and other passing prey. Their legs cannot support their bodies on land, so they can only use their abdomens to propel them forward.

Koreaceratops

Koreatoceratops Hwaseong was named and published in 2010 by South Korean geologist Lee Young-nam and his colleagues. The fossils were found in the Early Cretaceous (Albutian) rocks of Korea. Koreatoceratops is characterized by tall nerve spines on the tail vertebrae, as well as a unique talus structure. Its nerve spines are about five times longer than the vertebrae. Paleontologists suggest that the high nerve spines may have evolved independently and may have been adapted for swimming.

Based on the morphological characteristics and the location of the discovery, scientists speculate that it should be able to dive into the water to eat aquatic plants, and wait for the opportunity to hunt fish and shrimp.

QUESTION: There are a lot of dinosaurs that we have never heard of, can you also reconstruct them in 1:1 sizes? Were dinosaurs able to dive in ancient times?

ANSWER: Building life size animatronic dinosaurs based on their types is capable. According to scientists studies, most dinosaurs were able to wade, but some were able to dive.

Animatronic Baryonyx Video: