Living: Just like a bird, the Coelophysis had a small head, a slim body, a s-shaped neck and long, bird-like legs. The bones were hollow and the hips were attached to the spine – like today’s birds. But the Coelophysis had scales and the front legs had three-fingered hands and a long lizard-like tail. Living in herds gave these dinosaurs a great defense-system, especially against the great and aggressive prehistoric crocodile-relatives, known as the Rauisuchids. The worst danger against the Coelophysis’ was the fearsome jaws on the Parasuchis, also known as the Phytosaurs.
Reconstruction: The thin Coelophysis was driven forward by its long, powerful legs. With a stretched neck and tail, the dinosaur followed its prayer through the deserted land.
Prehistoric Theropods: These dinosaurs looked almost like the Coelophysis’, but with a relatively larger head and eyes.
The paleontologist Paul Olsen found fossils in Nova Scotia, which dates back to the early Triassic period.
Mass-death: The paleontologists found hundreds of mixed-up Coelophysis-skeletons in the northern part of New Mexico in 1940. The crowd drowned, when a part of the desert suddenly got flooded.
Cannibalism: The Coelophysis-skeleton had some small bones right next to the ribs, which indicate, that the dinosaur probably was a cannibal. It might have eaten one of its own kind.
