Location : Africa

Abrictosaurus provides more evidence that dinosaurs originated in or near what is now South America. This little plant-eating dinosaur lived at the very beginning of the Jurassic Period and looked like many of the early dinosaurs. It would have walked on its hind legs and been a swift runner. Although the fossils were discovered in South Africa, scientists know that this region was once attached to South America during the Jurassic Period. Paleontologists think that the dinosaurs spread out all over the region by migration, a type of travel that spreads animals to different parts of the world. So far, the earliest dinosaur fossils have been discovered in South America and the surrounding lands that were connected to it during the Early Mesozoic.

What scientists know of Abrictosaurus comes mostly from the skull fragments of a single specimen. This specimen is believed to be a female of the genus Heterodontosaurus  It is believed to be of this genus because it possesses similar dentition, although it lacks large canines.