Teeth suggest ancestors of diplodocus may have eaten meat

Scientists analysed the teeth of 11 early dinosaurs to investigate the types of food they were likely to eat. Photograph: Gabriel Ugueto

With its huge feet, long neck and penchant for plants, the diplodocus may be one of history’s biggest vegetarians. But research has revealed the sauropod’s ancestors may have had a taste for flesh.

Scientists studying the teeth of some of the earliest dinosaurs to roam the Earth say they have uncovered telltale clues as to what they ate.