The Compsognathus is the smallest dinosaur in the Jurassic Period. It only ran on its two back legs. Its shape allows it to run fast and swiftly. This can help it to run from all the predators. Its top speed was twetny-five miles per hour.
It was the size of a chicken. It was only two and a half feet long including the tail. its height was only one foot tall. It weighed only ten pounds. Seeing how it runs so fast because it only weighed so little, which made a lot easier to run from predators.
It's pointed head which was only three inches long was the smallest part of its whole body. The tail was longer than the head, neck, and body put together. It had sharp big teeth that were found in its fossil skull. The compsognathus really needed sharp teeth because his head was probabaly the size of your palm, so it's sharp teeth helped it a lot to chew and eat.
It had no fur, which was really good for him because the air was hot, if it had fur it could die by being overheated. It was a cold blooded animal, that needed to be more warmed up because it allows it to move around more. If the air was to be cold it would make it hard for him to run fast, and if it could not move, the bigger animals would eat him all up.
In Bavaria, Germany, in stone now which was mud before. The archaeologists found that right at the spot where the stomach was, there was another skeleton that looked like a tiny reptile skeleton. The scientists didn't know what it was. Some of the scientists thought maybe it was an animal the compsognathus swallowed whole, others thought the compsognathus could have been pregnant, but the scientists thought all dinosaurs laid eggs. Then they thought maybe some could have laid their young alive. Here is a picture of how the fossil looked like.
The comsognathus lived in the later years of the jurassic period. About 208 million years ago the jurassic period began, 146 million years ago it ended. It lasted 62 million years long. The jurassic period was warm and moist. There was a lot of big dinosaurs around the creature. There was a lot of plants, ferns, and trees.
Reference:
McGowen, Tom, Album of Dinosaur, Rand McNally, Chicago, 1972.
Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., Compsognathus, http://www.eb.com/quaker/22.html, 1998.
Nopcsa, Baron F.,13a. Nopcsa and a Dinner for Compsognathus, 1903, http://www.lhl.lib.mo.us/pubserv/hos/dino/nop1903.htm, 1903.
By: Joyce Advincula
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