The Smartest Dinosaur Ever

By Tyler Paine

If I were to ask you what the smartest dinosaur was, what would be the first species you think of? Perhaps something popularized by movies and television, such as velociraptors, since they are often portrayed as intelligent, pack-hunting creatures. Well, what if I were to tell you that instead of a species popularized by media, one of the most intelligent dinosaur species was actually a lesser-known family of theropods called Troodontidae.

Unlike many popular dinosaurs that existed in the past, the majority of the Troodontidae family consisted of smaller dinosaurs that were usually about half as tall as an average human and around 1-2 meters long, but some species could be taller. However, they made up for their lack of size through their aforementioned intelligence, with most of the family possessing extremely large brains, usually about the size of a golf ball, when compared to their body mass. This alludes to them possessing a similar intelligence to modern-day birds, especially when paleontologists calculated their cerebrum-to-brain-volume ratio to be closer to a typical avian brain rather than a modern-day lizard’s brain.

Due to their larger brain, it could also be assumed that the troodontidae family would have had better eyesight, hearing, and a sense of smell compared to other dinosaurs during their time, which would have helped them not only hunt for more food but also avoid other larger predators. Other structural factors of troodontids help reinforce these ideas, such as their eyes pointing forward, giving them binocular vision, which would allow them to have better depth perception and eyesight as a whole. Additionally, they had unusually complex ear structures compared to other theropods, with them having middle ear canals for overall better hearing.

Paleontologists also theorize that their hunting and living patterns may be similar to those of velociraptors and other theropods, where they would hunt and live in packs. This is primarily supported by physical similarities to multiple pack-hunting theropods and by some fossilized remains of nesting sites that exhibit communal nesting behavior among troodontids. However, troodontids seem to have also exhibited solitary behaviors, so it is possible that they could hunt together or alone if necessary, making them more adaptable to their environment.

Unlike most theropods, however, troodontids were most likely omnivores due to their teeth being serrated, making them perfect for hunting prey by latching onto them with their sharp teeth, but also similar in size and shape to herbivorous reptiles. This means that they could adapt to their environments by switching from their source of food if needed, making them more versatile than strictly carnivorous dinosaurs.

Overall, based on the size of the brain and fossil remnants alluding to possible physical behaviors, it can be assumed that troodontids are one of, if not the smartest, species of dinosaurs to exist. And I love them for it since they demonstrate a small step in evolution that prioritizes intelligence and pack behavior over simple brute strength, as seen with many other dinosaurs.