History Main / DinosaursAreDragons

* ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolf'': In the fourth film, all of the dragons mostly lack attributes that are associated with dinosaurs. However, the villain is a dragon named Tyranno-Rex, referencing the ''Tyrannosaurus rex''.

* ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'': Kijyo Kōyō is a {{Youkai}} who can take to form of a dinosaur that resembles a ''T. Rex''. She breathes fire and is considered a dragon by skills and attacks that benefit or harm dragons. When asked about why she takes the form of a dinosaur, she recalls being impressed by a skeleton of a dragon god of the mountains, which might have been a dinosaur fossil.

* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'': Averted, since "dinosaur" and "dragon" are distinct creature types. However, Ixalan does reference this in its reprint of [[https://scryfall.com/card/xln/252/dragonskull-summit Dragonskull Summit]], where it's stated that a planeswalker mistook the plane's native dinosaurs for dragons, and the name stuck in some groups.

** ''VideoGame/PokemonScarletAndViolet'' has the [[AnIcePerson Ice]]/Dragon-type Frigibax, Arctibax, and Baxcalibur, based on the ''Spinosaurus''. The Paradox Pokémon Roaring Moon, Koraidon and Walking Wake are all Dragon-type, and all have either saurian postures or protofeathers in line with more modern dinosaur depictions.

** ''VideoGame/PokemonScarletAndViolet'' has the [[AnIcePerson Ice]]/Dragon-type Frigibax, Arctibax, and Baxcalibur, based on the ''Spinosaurus''.

* ''Fanfic/JurassicWorld2020'':

** Finally, the spinosaurus are described multiple times over the course of their debut mission in ways that heavily evoke the appearance of dragons.

* When naturalist Chris Packham was on Creator/TheBBC Radio 2 segment ''Tracks of my Years'', the song he chose for his earliest memories was "Puff the Magic Dragon", explaining that as a kid he was fascinated by dinosaurs, and when he was ''very'' young, dragons were sort of the same thing.

* ''Series/LandOfTheLost1991'' has an episode where a medieval knight shows up, claiming to be TheDragonslayer. When he sees Scarface the ''[[KingOfTheDinosaurs Tyrannosaurus rex]]'', he calls it "the king of all dragons". He and Kevin barely manage to escape.

* ''WebAnimation/MesozoiqueAlternatif'': In this short, several dinosaurs, particularly [[KingOfTheDinosaurs Rex]], [[LivingDinosaurs survive past the end of the prehistoric age and into human history]]. In the Middle Ages, the dinosaurs are shown sleeping on (or in Rex's case, in) a massive pile of treasure, just like a dragon would... only for a group of knights to barge in with the intent of stealing said treasure. The other dinosaurs [[ThisIsGonnaSuck realize in horror]] that this is (almost) literally BullyingADragon, and sure enough, the knights' loud trumpet-playing, treasure theft, and fruitless attempts to slay Rex with a (relatively) tiny sword eventually lead to him [[RageBreakingPoint losing his temper]].

* ''Franchise/DCAnimatedUniverse'': The subtler versions of this trope pop up a few times. Additionally, it's clear that all the [[{{Animorphism}} animal-specific shapeshifters]] had a mixer and decided that ''[[KingOfTheDinosaurs Tyrannosaurus rex]]'' would be their go-to OneWingedAngel form.

Part of the issue is what constitutes a ''dragon'' has changed with language and time. Linguistically speaking, big reptiles such as crocodilians "are" dragons in a sense. If one showed a European or Asian Medieval passerby a crocodile or alligator, they would immediately identify it as a dragon. This is because the term "dragon" was once often used for crocodilians and large lizards. Even today, the Chinese Alligator's Mandarin name means "Earth Dragon" and the Hebrew word translated as "Dragon" is still used for crocodiles. This is one reason why many early tales of dragons that lack fantastical elements sound suspiciously like crocodile attacks and why references to crocodiles were often translated as "Dragons" in the English printings of Literature/TheBible. The fact these animals didn't live in areas of some dragon legends only fueled the myth as traits would get exaggerated in traveler tales, as they were for most foreign animals.

Part of the issue is what constitutes a "dragon" has changed with language and time. Linguistically speaking, big reptiles such as crocodilians "are" dragons in a sense. If one showed a European or Asian Medieval passerby a crocodile or alligator, they would immediately identify it as a dragon. This is because the term "dragon" was once often used for crocodilians and large lizards. Even today, the Chinese Alligator's Mandarin name means "Earth Dragon" and the Hebrew word translated as "Dragon" is still used for crocodiles. This is one reason why many early tales of dragons that lack fantastical elements sound suspiciously like crocodile attacks and why references to crocodiles were often translated as "Dragons" in the English printings of Literature/TheBible. The fact these animals didn't live in areas of some dragon legends only fueled the myth as traits would get exaggerated in traveler tales, as they were for most foreign animals.

** Another creationist, Duane T. Gish, suggested ''Parasaurolophus'''s crest enabled it to breathe fire in the book ''Dinosaurs by Design'' (pictured in the trope image) similar to how a bombardier beetle can shoot boiling chemicals from its abdomen, going on to suggest that the Biblical Leviathan was a ''Parasaurolophus''. Anyone who bothered to actually read The Bible will quickly notice a ''Parasaurolophus'' looks absolutely nothing like the crocodilian or serpentine Leviathan.

** Sometimes it is applied to non-dinosaurian reptiles as well. "Bakonydraco" is a pterosaur from Hungary; [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakonydraco it doesn't look very much like a dragon though]], and the azhdarchid family of pterosaurs are named for a legendary Persian dragon, and the Chinese word for pterosaur is 翼龙 (pinyin yì lóng, which translates to "winged dragon"), with one genus named ''Feilongus'' (from 飞龙, pinyin fēilóng, meaning "flying dragon"). The most famous of them, ''Quetzalcoatlus'', was named for the feathered serpent god Quetzalcoatl from Myth/AztecMythology. Given its [[http://web.archive.org/web/20150908052700/http://www.azmnh.org/Exhibits/images/skies/img6.png immense size]] and status as an apex predator, the resemblance between it and a dragon is not difficult to see.

** In July 1984, amateur paleontologist Kurt Wiedenroth discovered a fragmentary pterosaur skeleton in the loam pit of Engelbostel at the southern edge of the city of Hanover. Over the years, paleontologists can't decide whether the discovery is a species of ''Ornithocheirus'' or ''Lonchodectes''. It's not until '''2019''' that they decided it's a new genus and should be given a new name. Finally in November 2019, the new genus is named ''Targaryendraco'' after House Targaryen, who are/were {{Dragon Rider}}s in the ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' series.

Part of the issue is what constitutes a "dragon" has changed with language and time. Strictly speaking, crocodilians ''are'' dragons. If one showed a European or Asian Medieval passerby a crocodile or alligator, they would immediately identify it as a dragon. This is because the term "dragon" was once often used for crocodilians and large lizards. Even today, the Chinese Alligator's Mandarin name means "Earth Dragon" and the Hebrew word translated as "Dragon" is still used for crocodile. This is one reason why many early tales of dragons that lack fantastical elements sound suspiciously like crocodile attacks and why references to Nile Crocodiles were often translated as "Dragons" in the English printings of Literature/TheBible. The fact these animals didn't live in areas of some dragon legends only fueled the myth as traits would get exaggerated in traveler tales, as they were for most foreign animals.

* ''Anime/DoraemonNobitaAndTheWingedBraves'' have the gang fighting a prehistoric dinosaur monster awakened [[MonsterInTheIce from an icy cavern]], Phoenixia, who resembles a TRexpy but with the ability to breath fire. And when Phoenixia gets accidentally hit by Doraemon's Evolution Light, it leads to an EvilEvolves moment causing it to sprout wings, draconic horns, and golden scales.

* ''Film/ReignOfFire'': The opening narration mentions that scientists found fossils that confirm that dragons were responsible for wiping out the dinosaurs. This doesn't state their relation to the dinosaurs, but may imply a distant relation.

* ''VideoGame/SandsOfDestruction'': Rhi'a's personal quest has you freeing her ancestor from a curse that's keeping him a zombie. Naturally, this ancient dragon bears a striking resemblance to a ''T. rex'', as do some of the RandomEncounters around the Dragonkin Ruins of the current day. Rhi'a's grandfather appearing as a skeleton is also likely meant to bring fossils to mind, because EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs!

* ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'' is either a dragon or a dinosaur depending on which fan you ask. Indeed, the fantastic nature of most {{Kaiju}} sways from one extreme to the other depending on the movie. [[Film/Godzilla1954 The original film]] says that he's a sea-dwelling dinosaur (not too different from his current self) who was resurrected and mutated by [[ILoveNuclearPower the miracle of atomic mutation]] and he just happened to fit into the local dragon mythology, which is full of VirginSacrifice. His origin is given much more clearly in ''Film/GodzillaVsKingGhidorah'' which reveals he really is a mutated dinosaur that became a legendary figure. The confusion among English-speaking fans, at least, is probably due to the American dub of ''Film/GodzillaRaidsAgain''. In it, an educational film reel explained that dinosaurs, including Godzilla (there called Gigantis) and Anguirus, were ''created from pools of burning lava and sulfur'', resulting in their being walking fire elementals of sorts.

There is a bit more justification for this confusion in Eastern media; the shared (Chinese character) word for "dinosaur" in Chinese, Korean, and Japanese is 恐龍[[note]]Chinese pinyin: kǒnglóng; Japanese: kyōryū; Korean: gonglyong[[/note]], which literally means "terrible dragon". It was originally coined by Japanese paleontologist Yokoyama Matajirō, based on the Ancient Greek origins of "dinosaur" in ''deinos'' (terrible) + ''sauros'' (lizard), and later adopted by other academics in China and Korea. "Dragon" was used in the translated name because it evoked the image of a large reptilian creature; an alternative, 恐蜥, meaning "terrible lizard", was also proposed, but didn't catch on.[[note]]Incidentally, when people discovered fossil bones in ancient China, they also believed that they were dragon bones. [[AllNaturalSnakeOil Many crushed dinosaur fossils were sold over the years as "dragon bone powder."]][[/note]]

* In ''Manga/OnePiece'', the [[Recap/OnePieceLandOfWanoArc Wano Country Arc]] ultimately reveals that the Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit eaten by X Drake (the X is pronounced Diez) which allows him to turn into a Dinosaur is the ''Ryu Ryu no Mii, Model: Allosaurus'' (''Dragon Dragon fruit, Model: Allosaurus''). Apparently, the Ancient Dragon models allows you to turn into dinosaurs, as several top commanders of the Beast Pirates also have Dragon Fruit Models, such as King who can turn into a Pteranodon, Queen who turns into a Brachiosaur, and Page One who turns into a Spinosaurus. This is a reference to the fact that in Japanese the word for Dinosaur, ''Kyoryu'' (恐竜), contains the character, ''Ryu'' (竜), which means dragon. [[spoiler: Ironically, this is not the case with the ''actual'' eastern dragon fruit eaten by Kaido, which is a Mythical Zoan Fruit, the ''Uo Uo no Mii, Model: Seiryu'' (''Fish Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon''). The name being Fish instead of Dragon is most likely a reference to the famous legend of the Koi fish that swam up a waterfall and transformed into a dragon when it reached the top and passed through the Dragon Gate. This is especially true when you remember that the main method of entering the island of Wano itself is by using giant koi to travel up a massive waterfall.]]

** ''Series/PowerRangersDinoThunder'' has the White Ranger with what's clearly a pterosaur mecha -- called the "Drago zord", if only because "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tupuxuara Tupuxuarazord]]" kinda doesn't roll off the tongue.

* Myth/NorseMythology's dragons are an interesting example. They are referred to as serpents (''ormr'') and generally assumed to be snake-like [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztmUMEwEWPI but at least one is said to have feathers]], a distinctly dinosaurian ([[https://www.livescience.com/64324-pterosaurs-had-feathers.html or pterosaurian]]) trait.

** In the 4th Edition ''D&D'' books, [[CallARabbitASmeerp herbivorous dinosaurs were renamed "behemoths"]], in an effort to avoid anachronisms. In the 4th edition Monster Manual, we have a "Bloodspike Behemoth" (a ''Stegosaurus''), and a "Macetail Behemoth" (an ''Ankylosaurus''). But the carnivorous dinos are now called "drakes". This might have been falling in line with the Eberron Campaign Setting's dinosaur conventions. In Eberron dinosaurs don't use the Latin names we use, [[http://eberron.wikia.com/wiki/Dinosaur#Species instead they're given rather descriptive names like "fleshraker" and "swordtooth titan"]].

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' probably deserves a mention here due to Creator/GregWeisman's ShrugOfGod in response to the question, "[[http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/faq.php?s=faq18#1 What kind of animal are Gargoyles classified as?]]":
-->"Going by evolution, the gargoyles descended from a species that is often classified along with dinosaurs, without necessarily being dinosaurs." -- from [[http://www.s8.org/gargoyles/askgreg/faq.php?s=faq20#1 here]]

* Many of the old, outdated reconstructions of dinosaurs, pterosaurs and other Mesozoic reptiles were made to resemble the traditional appearance of dragons. They often sported lizardlike heads with rows of spines running down their backs. Good examples include [[http://dic.academic.ru/pictures/wiki/files/72/Hylaeosaurus.jpg this (somewhat)]] and [[http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_LOpbWIPseDg/S0d72d-wb9I/AAAAAAAAAP4/VWfSUyRNy_Q/s400/441076537_47bc319d9b_o.jpg the theropod in this picture]], who is also {{Groin Attack}}ing his prey. Ironically, the more accurate later dinosaur reconstructions wound up reshaping the way dragons were envisioned, making ''them'' appear more dinosaur-like.

* ''[[http://www.theguardian.com/science/lost-worlds/2015/apr/29/bird-yi-qi-the-dinosaur-evolution-flight-feather-nature Yi qi]]'', a recently discovered scansoriopterygid (a group of long-fingered arboreal theropods closely related to birds) dinosaur, which had membranes of skin stretched across its hands, and so likely resembled a tiny feathered wyvern. It was probably not capable of flying, and used its bat-like wings for gliding.