Iguanodontids

Around 140 million years ago, the swamps and lagoons of the Early Cretaceous Period were replaced by great swathes of land criss-crossed by meandering rivers. Large channels and seasonal streams wove through forests, where floods and wildfires were common events.

Browsing on the tree ferns and horsetails that grew in abundance were a group of dinosaurs known as the iguanodontids. Iguanodontid is the scientific name for the family of herbivorous dinosaurs that includes Iguanodon. Although they would have looked similar, it is likely that the fossils we find locally did not belong to a true species of Iguanodon but a close relative called Mantellisaurus.

Iguanodontids were squat dinosaurs with short forelimbs and massive hindlimbs. Scientists believe that they could have swapped between walking on all fours and walking on two legs. We can tell that iguanodontids were herbivores by looking closely at their teeth which were specially evolved for chewing tough plants. They had a large pointed spike instead of a thumb that may have been used to defend against predators.

The remains of iguanodontids are rare on the Jurassic Coast and most of the fossils found are badly damaged or broken. Unfortunately for us, after an animal died, its bones were often scattered far and wide as they tumbled along in fast-flowing rivers. This makes identifying which species of dinosaur a particular fossil belonged to especially difficult.