Fun Weewarrasaurus Facts For Kids

Weewarrasaurus pobeni is a member of the Ornithopoda group and a new dinosaur to be discovered from the Griman Creek Formation of the Wee Warra mining field in New South Wales of Australia. This region is close to the town of Lightning Ridge.

The discovery of the fossil remains, which consisted of lower jawbones (also referred to as dentary) and teeth, took place in 2013. The dinosaur was named by paleontologist Phil Bell. The fossil specimen is now kept at the Australian Opal Centre, Lightning Ridge.

The most fascinating aspect of this plant-eating dinosaur is that its dentary and teeth were found in opal fossils. Since only a part of the jaw of this dinosaur has been found, with no other skeletal remains, it certainly has been hard to correctly understand all its physical features and habits.

However, it has been estimated that Weewarrasaurus walked on its two legs and had a prominent beak.

It is also thought that this dinosaur remained as a part of a group to protect itself from predators. Any future discovery of skeletal remains of Weewarrasaurus or "Wee Warra lizard" will give us a better understanding of this species.

In search of more facts related to Weewarrasaurus? Then keep reading! You may also check out Caviramus and Prosaurolophus.

Weewarrasaurus Interesting Facts

How do you pronounce 'Weewarrasaurus'?

'Weewarrasaurus' is pronounced as 'We-wah-rah-sor-us'.

What type of dinosaur was a Weewarrasaurus?

Weewarrasaurus was a type of ornithopod that existed in a small locality of Australia.

In which geological period did the Weewarrasaurus roam the earth?

Weewarrasaurus pobeni existed 113-100 million years ago. This period of time corresponds to the Late Cretaceous period.

When did the Weewarrasaurus become extinct?

This dinosaur probably became extinct during the Cenomanian stage of the Late Cretaceous era.

Where did a Weewarrasaurus live?

The discovery of Weewarrasaurus fossils took place in the Wee Wara opal mining field, which is near Lightning Ridge in New South Wales of Australia. The fossil remains were excavated from the Griman Creek Formation.

The second specimen was collected from the Three Mine opal field, also near Lightning Ridge. The collected bones are now kept in the Australian Opal Centre. Apart from Weewarrasaurus, different dinosaurs like Austrosaurus and Minmi also lived in Australia.

What was a Weewarrasaurus' habitat?

In the Cretaceous period, the town of Lightning Ridge in New South Wales had a number of lakes and waterways which supported lush green vegetation. The climate was temperate, and even though there were dark long winters, the conditions were stable enough for the survival of the plant-eating Weewarrasaurus pobeni.

Who did a Weewarrasaurus live with?

It has been postulated that the individual Weewarrasaurus dinosaur was part of a group in order to protect itself from fierce predators.

How long did a Weewarrasaurus live?

The exact lifespan of the members of the Weewarrasaurus genus is not known. However, it can be estimated that this dinosaur did not have a very long life, as smaller dinosaurs usually had short life longevities.

How did they reproduce?

The reproductive patterns of Weewarrasaurus pobeni are largely unknown as there are no fossil remains to correspond to the reproductive structure or behavior of this group. It can be said that this dinosaur was egg-laying in nature, otherwise referred to as oviparous.

Most dinosaur species laid their eggs in nests. While some groups established nesting colonies, others may have been solitary. It can be assumed that Weewarrasaurus displayed similar behavior.

Weewarrasaurus Fun Facts

What did a Weewarrasaurus look like?

The complete appearance of Weewarrasaurus pobeni is yet to be deduced, as this is a new dinosaur to be discovered. Additionally, the only collected fossil specimen of this Ornithopod consists of its jawbone.

Some of the estimated features of Weewarrasaurus are that this was a modest-sized species of dinosaur, comparable to the Labrador dog of today. It walked on its hind limbs and had a prominent beak and teeth that aided in its feeding activities.

Most Ornithopods had three-toed feet, horny beaks, and a stiff tail. So, it is quite likely that members of the genus Weewarrasaurus displayed these characteristics as well.

*We've been unable to source an image of Weewarrasaurus and have used an image of Convolosaurus instead. If you are able to provide us with a royalty-free image of Weewarrasaurus, we would be happy to credit you. Please contact us at hello@kidadl.com.

How many bones did a Weewarrasaurus have?

Due to the absence of a complete skeletal fossil of this species, it is quite hard to deduce the total number of bones possessed by this dinosaur. To date, only a partial jawbone of this dinosaur has been discovered.

The holotype consists of two sections of the lower jawbone, also referred to as dentary, along with teeth. Another partial jawbone was also found in addition to this holotype. The specimens collected now reside at the Australian Opal Centre.

How did they communicate?

A description of the methods of communication that were used by Weewarrasaurus is yet to be published. However, it can be assumed that these dinosaurs may have used different vocalizations to communicate with each other.

How big was a Weewarrasaurus?

The estimated length of Weewarrasaurus pobeni is about 3.6 ft (1.1 m). This dinosaur was quite small in size, with its size usually being compared to a Labrador dog or kelpie dog of present times. In comparison to the Ornithopod by the name of Shantungosaurus, which grew up to 50 ft (15.2 m), W. pobeni was significantly smaller.

How fast could a Weewarrasaurus move?

In general, ornithopods are considered to have been quite fast. The stiff tails of these dinosaurs helped them in balancing themselves, while they ran on their hind legs. The same could be true for this new dinosaur as well.

How much did a Weewarrasaurus weigh?

The estimated weight of Weewarrasaurus is 4 lb (1.8 kg), further highlighting how small this dinosaur was.

What were the male and female names of the species?

There are no separate names assigned to the male and female dinosaurs of this species.

What would you call a baby Weewarrasaurus?

A baby Weewarrasaurus would be known as a hatchling.

What did they eat?

The Weewarrasaurus diet consisted of various vegetation, as these dinosaurs were plant-eating in nature. During the Cretaceous era, when these animals inhabited Lightning Ridge and the areas near it, their environment had sufficient terrestrial plants. So, the flora of their localities became a part of their diet.

How aggressive were they?

Given the size and diet of this dinosaur, it is best to assume that it wasn't very aggressive in nature.

Did you know...

Weewarrasaurus existed at the same time as other related ornithopods like Anabisetia, Trinisaura, Macrogryphosaurus, and Gasparinisaura.

How do Opalised fossils form?

At Lightning Ridge, two kinds of opalization processes took place that resulted in the formation of opalized fossils.

One of the ways occurred when opal was formed due to silica being dissolved in water. After this silica solution filled any empty cavity, the solution eventually hardened to form an opalized cast of the bone that left the empty cavity.

In such cases, while the internal details of the objects were not preserved, the outer features looked as beautiful and detailed, as ever.

The second method was by which the internal details of the remains were preserved, as well. This happened when the silica trickled deep into the organic material before it decomposed, and hence, replaced the organic molecules of the remains.

Not only did this help in the preservation of the internal details of the fossil, but the silica became transparent and the remains became easily viewable from the outside.

How did the Weewarrasaurus get its name?

The name 'Weewarrasaurus' was given to this dinosaur, as its remains were discovered from the Wee Warra opal mining fields. The specific name 'pobeni' was ascribed to this species in honor of an opal dealer by the name of Mike Poben.

Poben was the one who found and recognized the remains as fossils and donated them for further research. The nomenclature was done by Phil Bell and others in 2018.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly dinosaur facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these Homalocephale facts and Harpactognathus facts pages.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable weewarrasaurus coloring pages.*The first image was taken by Петр Меньшиков.

*The second image was taken by Kate A. Andrzejewski, Dale A. Winkler, Louis L. Jacobs.