This burning question was asked of me during the writing workshop I ran last month. See last month’s blog for further details on the workshop.
I hesitated before I answered this question as the more I thought about it, the more I considered the complexities of answering.
In a nutshell, the kids came to one conclusion - maybe.
Let’s consider the similarities and differences of dragons and dinosaurs before we come to our conclusion.
Dinosaurs - are real. Palaeontologists have discovered many fossils of dinosaurs proving their existence.
Dragons - are probably not real. No one has ever found any fossils or evidence. They are mythical creatures based in legendary stories passed down over generations. They are the subject of bedtime stories, picture books, novels and movies.
Dinosaurs can be found all around the world on every continent and in all types of environments and climates.
Dragons were said to soar the skies from mountain tops, caves and volcanoes, causing havoc wherever they appeared.
Dinosaurs existed millions of years ago, and were extinct long before humans walked the Earth.
Dragons were said to be hunted by medieval knights and set fear into the hearts and minds of terrified villagers. Some dragons could be trained by humans to be ridden like horses, imagine trying to train a dinosaur!
Both dinosaurs and dragons hatched from eggs.
Both dinosaurs and dragons looked like large reptiles with scaly skin and sharp teeth.
Not all dinosaurs had scaly reptilian skin. Fossils have shown that some dinosaurs were more avian or bird-like with feathers covering their body.
Only a few dinosaurs (known as pterosaurs) could fly, but all dragons had massive wingspans and could fly. Pterosaurs are not actually dinosaurs, although they are related.
The largest pterosaur to be discovered in outback Queensland Australia, is said to be the closest looking dinosaur that resembles a dragon. It had a wingspan of over 9 metres or 30 feet and had a head as long as 1 metre or 3 feet. It also had very sharp teeth. While this is the largest pterosaur found in Australia, it is not the largest in the world.
Thapunngaka Shawi the largest pterosaur discovered in Queensland, is the closest dinosaur to resemble a dragon.
Dinosaurs did not breathe fire.
Dragons were known to be able to breathe fire, causing devastation to timber walled, grass thatched roofed homes. They could reduce a medieval village to ashes within minutes, scolding everything and everyone in their path. Dragons were able to breathe fire either because they were magical, or possibly by breathing out flammable gases that they could ignite with a spark.
Dinosaurs were not magical.
Dragons were often magical. How else could a reptile that huge manage to fly? Dragons would have to have a very big wingspan to carry their body weight or have an extremely unusually light body.
Dragon magic is said to be based on the four elements, earth, wind, fire and water. They could camouflage or change colour to suit their environment and even form clouds. (hint: my upcoming picture book has something to do with this.)
Dinosaurs had a varied appetite. Some were carnivorous, (meat eating) , some were herbivorous, (plant eating) and some were omnivores. (meaning they ate both plants and meat.)
Dragons on the other hand were meat lovers only.
Dinosaurs had very small brains, therefore they are not considered to have been very intelligent. It is generally considered that they were not even as intelligent as birds that exist today.
Dragons according to legends, were extremely intelligent, possibly even more so than humans.
Both dinosaurs and dragons are depicted to have tails. Most were very long and often spikey like the ankylosaurs or stegosaurus.
A stegosaurus had a long spiky tail and scaly skin.
Dragons had long spiky tails and scaly skin.
Have I helped you make up your mind yet? Perhaps you could draw a Venn diagram like the one below with all the possibilities of contrasts and overlaps to help you reach your final decision.
As for me, what do I think? I do like to write fiction stories for children, so I’ll leave that answer to your imagination.
Leave a comment below to let me know if you believe dragons are related to dinosaurs..