Dinosaurs were in hurry to rule the world

While it is true that the dinosaurs once were the lords of all they surveyed on this planet, scientists are now questioning the time period they took to do so. New studies are now showing that the rise of the dinosaurs to the top of the animal kingdom may not have been all that rapid, and definitely slower than what was believed earlier.

This latest disagreement on the scientific horizon is on the basis of the discovery of new fossils, dating back about 215 million years. The new discovery gave evidence that dinosaurs had in fact co-existed with other animals and ancestors that were so far thought to be their ancestors.

The first true dinosaurs, according to researchers, were not the behemoths we often associate with the term today. They were much smaller, almost the size of dogs, possibly. These animals came on to the evolutionary scene around 230 million years back.

The earlier prevailing theory was that the smaller creatures basically out-maneuvered their bigger predecessors, called dinosauromorphs, into extinction. However, the new proof shows that this tussle between the new smaller creatures and the older and bigger creatures lasted for quite a while.

According to the new fossils, which were found in New Mexico, the dinosauromorphs and their newly evolved smaller cousins co-existed for a long period of time, almost 15 to 20 million years. Paleontologist Kevin Padian said this was the first time there was evidence dinosaurs and their supposed predecessors were actually co-existing.

The evidence gathered is significant. One of the findings is the remains of a 1.5 meter long dinosaur precursor called the Dromomeron. Another is an unnamed precursor that is almost three times the size of the Dromomeron, a herbivore that walked four-legged and had a beaked snout.

Besides these precursors, scientists also found remains of two-legged and small carnivorous dinosaurs, the Chindesaurus. Other dinosaur remains included those of a close relative of the Coelophysis, a dinosaur from the Triassic Age. These creatures were not the terrors that the dinosaurs of the Jurassic Age were. They were, in fact, meek compared to some of the other creatures they co-existed with.

The discovery of the fossils was made at Hayden Quarry, located on Ghost Ranch. This has been the site where a number of fossil discoveries have been made over the years.