Pelecanimimus
|
Pelecanimimus Temporal range: Early Cretaceous, 130 Ma |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Restoration of P.polyodon | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Order: | Saurischia |
| Suborder: | Theropoda |
| Clade: | †Ornithomimosauria |
| Genus: |
†Pelecanimimus Perez-Moreno et al., 1994 |
| Species: | †P. polyodon |
| Binomial name | |
|
Pelecanimimus polyodon Perez-Moreno et al., 1994 |
|
Pelecanimimus (meaning "pelican mimic") is a genus of basal ("primitive") ornithomimosaurian theropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Spain. It is notable for possessing more teeth than any other member of the Ornithomimosauria (or any other theropod), most of which were toothless.
Pelecanimimus was a small ornithomimosaur, at about 2–2.5 m (6.6–8.2 ft). Its skull was unusually long and narrow, with a maximum length of about 4.5 times its maximum height. It was highly unusual among ornithomimosaurs in its large number of teeth: it had about 220 very small teeth in total, with seven premaxillary teeth, about thirty maxillary, and seventy-five in the dentary. The teeth were heterodont, showing two different basic forms. The teeth in the front of the upper jaw were broad and D-shaped in cross-section, while those further back were blade-like, and on the whole the teeth in the upper jaw were larger than those in the lower. All of its teeth were unserrated, and had a constricted "waist" between the crown and the root. Interdental plates were lacking.
Only one other ornithomimosaur is known to possess teeth, Harpymimus, which had far fewer (eleven total, and only in the lower jaw). The presence of such a large number of teeth in Pelecanimimus, coupled with a lack of interdental space, was interpreted by Pérez-Moreno et al. as an adaptation for cutting and ripping, a "functional counterpart of the cutting edge of a beak," as well as an exaptation leading to the toothless cutting edge found in later ornithomimosaurs.
The arms and hands of Pelecanimimus were more typical of ornithomimosaurs, with the ulna and radius bones in the lower arm tightly adhered to each other. The hand was hook-like and had fingers of equal length equipped with rather straight claws.
...
Wikipedia