The Massospondylus was a herbivorous prosauropod dinosaur that lived approximately 200 million years ago during the Jurassic period in Africa and North America. It was discovered by Sir Richard Owen in 1854 from fossils found in South Africa. Massospondylus grew up to 16.5 feet long, walked on four legs, and had adaptations like a small head, peg-like teeth, and stones in its stomach that helped digest plant materials. While initially thought to be a meat-eater, evidence shows it was likely an herbivore that lived in herds and had thumb claws for protection against predators such as Austroraptor and Allosaurus.

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2.  They lived around 200 million years ago,
during the Jurassic period, found in Africa and
North America.
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3.  The Massospondylus was discovered by Sir
Richard Owen in 1854 from the remains found
in South Africa.
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4.  The Massospondylus dinosaurs lived during
the Jurassic Park period in Africa and was
discovered in Upper Elliot Formation,
Harrismith, South Africa. Some species were
also found in North America.
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5.  The Massospondylus dinosaur was a
herbivore, which is a plant eater.
 Massospondylus' small head and long sharp
teeth suggested that this animal may have
actually been a meat-eater. However, more
recent evidence seems to support that
Massospondylus was in fact a plant-eater.
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6.  Massospondylus fossils show that the species had
a diet of plants; its lower tooth row was shorter
than its upper one, and its jaws and teeth are like
those of herbivores.
 The dinosaur might also have had a beak to help
cut vegetation before eating it. More evidence of
the Massospondylus' vegetarian diet was found in
South Africa. Rounded stones were discovered
near some of the specimens' ribcages.
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8.  Because the Massospondylus was really small,
it usually went to its relatives for protection.
But when it was in an open area, it could be
seen by lots of other dinosaurs like the
Stegosaurus or the Styracosaurus, which were
dinosaurs who usually ate smaller dinosaurs.
The main predators of the Massospondylus
was the Austroraptors and the Allosaurus.
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9.  However the Massospondylus did have some
protection against their predators in the form
of its thumb claws. When a group of
Massospondylus was threatened by predators,
they banded together, waved their thumb
claws together and imitated the predator.
However, they only acted like this towards
smaller predators. Usually, if it was a big one,
individual Massospondylus’ preferred to flee if
it was possible.
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10.  The Massospondylus was 16.5 ft long (5m),
and 3 ft tall. It had a long neck, a long tail, a
small head, peg-like teeth, and large five-
fingered hands with large and sharp five
claws. Massospondylus may have been able to
use its hand for grasping in addition to
walking. Its back legs were only a little bit
bigger than its front legs. It weighed around
770 ponds, at a full grown adult.
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12.  Half of the Massospondylus’ body was its tail.
 The name Massospondylus means "huge backbone.“
 It weighed 1.5 tons.
 Massospondylus swallowed pebbles and small stones
to help in the digestion of the tough leaves and other
plant material that it ate.
 A nest of six small eggs were found in Africa, with
embryos inside it, and it may have belonged to the
Massospondylus.
 A Massospondylus was a prosauropod, which was
plant eating dinosaurs before the Jurassic period, and
they all had long necks, long tails, and a small head.
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