10 modern animals that lived next to dinosaurs (11 photos)

Dinosaurs are a trend that is not losing popularity. An entire industry is dedicated to ancient mysterious creatures. Movies on this topic are regularly released, and there is no end to the number of books, clothes and souvenirs on this topic.





But there are no less worthy candidates for glory that lived with dinosaurs. So we were lucky to catch prehistoric creatures that were the best friends (or enemies) of dinosaurs.

1. Echidna



These spiny fellows appeared on Earth in the Cenozoic era. It was at this time that mammals began to become a more popular species on the planet.

2. Shark





Evidence of sharks dates back 450-420 million years. This was during the Ordovician period, before land vertebrates appeared and before many plants colonized the continents. Sure, they looked different, but the fact that they were ancient is impressive.

3. Lancelet



This predator is found in all oceans except the polar regions. A very voracious creature, it feeds on small fish and squid, and sometimes eats representatives of its own species.

4. Caiman



One of 23 species of crocodiles living today, caimans were quite common even during the time of the dinosaurs. And although there are far fewer of their species now than before, they continue to exist.

5. Bees



Their ancestral home was the arid regions of western Gondwana in the early Cretaceous period (145 million years ago), when dinosaurs still lived on Earth.

6. Lampreys



Modern hagfishes and lampreys are similar to the now extinct ostracoderms - jawless fish. These creatures, which lived alongside dinosaurs during the Jurassic period, serve as a link between the earliest lampreys and the 31 species that survive today.

7. Tuatara



The last living member of the sphenacodont family, the tuatara, is still alive and well. Their home is in New Zealand. About 250 million years ago, this little animal even shared a common ancestor with extinct dinosaurs.

8. Platypus



The oldest platypuses lived in the second half of the Early Cretaceous (about 110 million years ago). So, common platypuses felt quite at home next to duck-billed dinosaurs.

9. Sawfish



The sawfish lived in the era of dinosaurs. Scientists believe that members of this genus existed in the ocean waters of the Cretaceous period.

10. Frilled Shark



This deep-sea predator is one of the most primitive of all living sharks. It is a relic of the Cretaceous period, when dinosaurs ruled the Earth. They are rarely seen alive, and only recently were they captured on video for the first time. They live at great depths, where they feed mainly on squid. The frilled shark is considered a “living fossil” because it has not evolved since the time of the dinosaurs.