Deinonychus vs Sinosauropteryx

A detailed side-by-side comparison of Deinonychus and Sinosauropteryx, covering size, diet, classification, geologic period, and discovery history.

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Side-by-Side Comparison

Property Deinonychus Sinosauropteryx
Scientific Name Deinonychus antirrhopus Sinosauropteryx prima
Classification Dromaeosauridae Theropoda
Period Cretaceous Early Cretaceous Early
Diet Carnivore Carnivore
Length 3.4 m 1.0 m
Height 0.9 m 0.3 m
Weight 73 kg 1 kg
Discovery Year 1969 1996
Discovery Location Montana, USA Liaoning Province, China
Named By John Ostrom Ji Qiang & Ji Shu-An
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Size Comparison

Deinonychus 3.4 m

about the size of a human adult

Sinosauropteryx 1.0 m

smaller than a human child

Weight Comparison

Deinonychus 73 kg

about 1 adult humans

Sinosauropteryx 1 kg

lighter than a human adult

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Timeline Comparison

Deinonychus
145.0 Mya Cretaceous Early (Mesozoic) 100.5 Mya
Sinosauropteryx
145.0 Mya Cretaceous Early (Mesozoic) 100.5 Mya

Deinonychus and Sinosauropteryx both lived during the Cretaceous Early period and may have shared the same habitats.

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Diet Comparison

Deinonychus

Carnivore

Deinonychus was a meat-eating predator, hunting other animals for food.

Sinosauropteryx

Carnivore

Sinosauropteryx was a meat-eating predator, hunting other animals for food.

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Classification Comparison

Deinonychus

Clade: Theropoda

Group: Dromaeosauridae

(Raptors)

Sinosauropteryx

Clade: Saurischia

Group: Theropoda

(Beast feet)

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Did You Know?

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Deinonychus was about 3.4x longer than Sinosauropteryx.

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Deinonychus weighed roughly 122x more than Sinosauropteryx.

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Both Deinonychus and Sinosauropteryx were carnivores.

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Both dinosaurs lived during the Cretaceous Early period and may have coexisted.

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Deinonychus was discovered 27 years earlier, in 1969.

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Deinonychus belonged to Dromaeosauridae while Sinosauropteryx belonged to Theropoda.

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