Lesothosaurus

Type Species: Lesothosaurus diagnosticus

Classification: Dinosauria - Ornithischia - Heterodontosauridae

Time Period: Early Jurassic

Location: South Africa

Diet: Opportunistic Omnivore

Lesothosaurus was an herbivorous or omnivorous heterodontosaur from South Africa. It lived in a semi-arid environment about 200-190 million years ago during the Early Jurassic. It could grow up to six feet in length. It had long, slender legs, small arms with four-fingered hands that weren’t great at grasping, and a slender tail. It was probably a fast runner. Its neck was short but flexible; its skull was short and flat; and it had large eye sockets. It had a short, pointed snout that ended in a horny beak. Behind the beak were leaf-shaped teeth lining the jaws, and near the front of the upper jaws it had twelve fang-like teeth. Lesothosaurus sliced up its food with the beak, but it wouldn’t have been able to chew very well. Studies of tooth wear show less abrasion on the teeth than are expected with an herbivore, indicating that Lesothosaurus was an opportunistic omnivore that fed on plants during the wet seasons and small animals during the dry seasons. It had a distinctive femoral head not seen in other dinosaurs, and it was likely gregarious, living in social groups.