why are pterosaurs and aquatic marine animals in the past not considered dinosaurs?
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To *extremely* “ELI5” it, it’s kind of like asking why dogs are not considered Great Apes. Yeah they’re both 4-limbed mammals, but “Great Apes” refers to a specific genetically-related family of animals that dogs just aren’t in.
“Dinosaurs” doesn’t mean “any animal from ___ era”, it means “animals of the clade *dinosauria*”, which pterosaurs and aquatic marine animals just aren’t. They have different evolutionary ancestors and successors than the members of *dinosauria* do.
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