How do we know what dinosaurs looked like?

0 July 28, 2026 03:26

Listen to palaeobiologist Neil Gostling on The Conversation’s Curious Kids podcast talk about how scientists work out what dinosaurs looked like.

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Daniel Eskridge/ShutterstockWhen all we have left of dinosaurs is their fossilised bones, how do we know what they looked like on the outside? That’s what nine-year-old Kara from London wanted to know.

She joins our host Eloise and paleobiologist Neil Gostling on The Conversation’s Curious Kids podcast to find out all the ways scientists work out what dinosaurs looked like – from the way they walked, to their muscles and even what colour they were.

In each episode of The Conversation’s Curious Kids, a child joins host Eloise to ask a top researcher their burning question.

To listen to season two, follow us wherever you get your podcasts, or listen on the Yoto Player via the Discover section on the Yoto interactive audio platform for kids.

This is the last episode of season two, but you can listen back to season one and read lots of answers to questions sent in by children around the world in our Curious Kids series.

Got a question? Pop it in an email, or record it and send us the audio to [email protected].

This season of The Conversation’s Curious Kids is supported by the University of Southampton in the UK, a world-leading research-intensive university with a global network of international students and campuses in Malaysia and Delhi.

Disclosure statement

Neil Gostling has received funding from the Engineering and Physical Science Research Council. He is a trustee of the Lyme Regis (Philpot) Museum and trustee of the Friends of Dinosaur Isle.

Credits

This episode of The Conversation’s Curious Kids was hosted and mixed by Eloise Stevens. The producer was Katie Flood and the executive producer was Gemma Ware.

Tags: Academic Journalism, The Conversation, The Conversation Academic News