Cercetătorii cred că pot explica în sfârșit de ce nu au existat dinozauri foarte mici

Researchers have explored why very small dinosaurs, like those the size of a mouse, did not exist, despite the large size of many dinosaur species. They suggest that early mammals occupied ecological niches that prevented dinosaurs from evolving into smaller sizes. The study indicates that while some small dinosaurs existed, they were still significantly larger than today's smallest animals. The competition with early mammals likely hindered the evolution of tiny dinosaurs, which only began to change after the mass extinction event caused by an asteroid. Birds, which evolved from dinosaurs, adapted to smaller sizes, allowing them to thrive in these niches.