Are Dinosaurs more Lizard/Reptile or are they more like a bird?

[Ax01]

i was just inspired by this quote!

Chicken is my favorite dinosaur. At least to eat.

check out these pix of some dinosaurs. we have always associated Dinosaurs as big lizards but i've noticed that many resemble birds esp. in the hind-quarters from the thigh down through to the talons.

look at these big guys. it kinda looks like they have big chicken legs.



and even some of the smaller ones have feathers.



what do u think? i would esp. love to hear from our local forum scientists and geneticists.

[Bogertophis]

Seems the latest things I've read show a very close relationship between birds & reptiles, but as to which came first, "the chicken" or the lizard, we've long-
assumed it was the reptiles but it may well have been "birds"? And there were some pretty fierce "birds" flapping around back then...

[fadingdaylight]

I'm no scientist, but I'm gonna say that certain dinosaurs, like the winged varieties and the bipedal types, are definitely more bird like. Others, your four legged ground pounding varieties, clearly evolved into today's reptiles. I mean, seriously, look at a komodo dragon. It pretty much still is a dinosaur.

[Alex Lehner]

There is very clear evidence that most known dinosaurs that people imagine are direct descendants of today's modern birds. Scientists are finding more and more fossils of feathers on these dinosaurs, so most of the dinosaurs pictured here would have actually been feathered.

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[Valyndris]

I gotta say dinosaurs are definitely more like birds, I have a macaw and I call him a T-Rex. He looks like a T-Rex and bites really really hard like a T-Rex would.

[paulh]

Ever seen a Muscovy duck that's a bit past the down stage going for a bug? A killer dinosaur if I ever saw one.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archosaur

[Dianne]

I believe a bit of both. Alligators are virtually unchanged from their ancient ancestors, but there are a number with bird-like qualities.

[Alexiel03]

Majority of the bipedal carnivorous, raptors, rex etc, dinosaurs are thought to be most related to birds. I believe the Archaeopteryx was the first or one of the first dinosaurs discovered with feathers.
There were also several aquatic dinosaurs, like the mosasaurs or plesiosaur, that were closer to being lizards as well as many quadrupedal land dinos

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[Luvyna]

I voted for eating a dinosaur because that sounds cool, but I agree that they are more like birds! I totally believe that many dinosaurs had feathers.

As someone who has had pet chickens, I have to say that I've always felt chickens look very "dinosaur-like" especially before they are fully grown. Something about the head shape in particular.

And then there's the cassowary bird, which might as well be a living dinosaur:





One thing I also wonder about is whether dinosaurs really had slitted eyes like they do in most drawings, which makes them look more reptilian. Only nocturnal snakes have slitted eyes though, so if dinosaurs were diurnal wouldn't that mean they have round eyes like a chicken or a corn snake?

[Skeptiball]

Ever seen a roadrunner or a heron move, hunt, or eat? Better than watching Jurassic Park.

Man, now I want to eat a dinosaur.