Ornithopoda

† Ornithopoda is the diverse clade of bipedal ornithischian herbivores including iguanodontians, hadrosaurs, and hypsilophodontids. These dinosaurs radiated enormously in the Cretaceous and included the largest non-sauropod herbivores.

Diet & Feeding

Herbivore

Ornithopoda was a plant-eating dinosaur. Herbivores typically fed on ferns, cycads, conifers, and other vegetation available during their era. Many herbivorous dinosaurs developed specialized teeth and digestive systems for processing tough plant material.

Time Period

Cretaceous Early Mesozoic Era

Ornithopoda lived during the Cretaceous Early period of the Mesozoic Era, approximately 145.0 to 100.5 million years ago.

The Cretaceous saw continued dinosaur evolution with the rise of ornithopods and early ceratopsians. Flowering plants first appeared and began to transform terrestrial ecosystems. Spinosaurus and other large theropods lived during this time.