Jurassic Period

Camarasaurus

Camarasaurus, “the chambered lizard”, was a sauropod dinosaur from the Morrison Formation of western North America, dated to the late Jurassic Period about 157 to 147 million years ago. The animal gets its name from the numerous openings within its… Read More ›

Ophthalmosaurus

  Ophthalmosaurus was a 20 foot long ichthyosaur which swam in the oceans around Europe during the middle and late Jurassic Period. It is named after its distinctive large eyes. The coloration in the illustration that you see below is… Read More ›

Ceratosaurus

Ceratosaurus nasicornis was a 20-foot theropod dinosaur which lived in western North America during the late Jurassic Period, about 157-147 million years ago. It is one of the more famous Jurassic meat-eating dinosaurs, along with Allosaurus and Ornitholestes. It is the… Read More ›

Allosaurus

Allosaurus fragilis is one of the most famous and easily-recognized dinosaurs. Practically every museum has at least one specimen, either on display or in collections, and absolutely every basic-level children’s book about dinosaurs mentions Allosaurus, usually accompanied with a picture…. Read More ›

Archaeopteryx

In a previous post, I talked a little bit about the “raptor” dinosaurs and how they had feathers. Here is a drawing of Archaeopteryx, long reputed to be the earliest-known bird. It lived during the late Jurassic Period in what… Read More ›

Dermodactylus

NOTE: This article was original published on July 3, 2013. It was afterwards heavily updated and republished on December 28, 2025. If you want to find dinosaur bones, one of the best places to look for them is the Morrison… Read More ›