Dougal Dixon was born in Scotland and later graduated from The University of St Andrews with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1970 and a Master of Science degree in 1972. He began his career as a geological consultant for a publishing company in 1973, nurturing a special interest in fossils and evolution. He is now a full-time writer specializing in earth sciences and has written many children's books and encylopedia with a special interest in dinosaurs. He has made several television appearances and acted as a consultant and animator for a video programme about dinosaurs. As a practical geologist he took part in the 1995 Open University/Earthwatch expedition to Askja Caldera in central Iceland. In 1987 he was involved in excavating a dinosaur-rich site in Jurassic rocks at Durlston on the Dorset coast. Dougal was presented with the Distinguished Achievement Award for Excellence in Educational Journalism by The Educational Press Association of America in 1993, the Helen Roney Sattler Award in 1993, The Children's Book Council 1994 Outstanding Trade Science Book Award, and The Times Educational Supplement Primary Schoolbook Award in 1996. In the same year he was appointed as a trustee of the Dinosaur Society, UK.