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Gallimimus

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Dinosaurs

   iGallimimus

                        Fossil range: Late Cretaceous

   Gallimimus at the Natural History Museum, London.
   Gallimimus at the Natural History Museum, London.

                             Conservation status

   Extinct (fossil)
               Scientific classification

   Kingdom:    Animalia
   Phylum:     Chordata
   Class:      Sauropsida
   Subclass:   Diapsida
   Superorder: Dinosauria
   Order:      Saurischia
   Suborder:   Theropoda
   Family:     Ornithomimidae
   Genus:      Gallimimus
   Species:    G. bullatus

                                Binomial name

   Gallimimus bullatus
   Osmólska, Roniewics & Barsbold, 1972

   Gallimimus (gal-ih-MY-mus) , meaning 'fowl mimic', was an
   ornithomimosaur from the late Cretaceous Period ( Maastrichtian stage)
   Nemegt Formation of Mongolia. With a maximum length of 4 to 6 meters
   (13-20 feet) and weighing as much as 440 kilograms (970 pounds), it was
   one of the largest ornithomimosaurs. Gallimimus is known from multiple
   individuals, ranging from juvenile (about 0.5 metres tall at the hip)
   to adult (about 2 metres tall at the hip).

   The fossil remains of this dinosaur were discovered in the early 1970s
   in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia. In 1972, it was named by
   paleontologists Rinchen Barsbold, Halszka Osmólska, and Ewa Roniewicz.
   The only known species is Gallimimus bullatus. A supposed second
   species, "Gallimimus mongoliensis", has never been formally referred to
   this genus. A recent reanalysis of the nearly complete skeleton of
   Gallimimus mongoliensis concluded that it is not a species of
   Gallimimus but may represent a new, currently unnamed ornithomimid
   genus (Kobayashi & Barsbold, 2006).

   Gallimimus was rather ostrich-like, with a small head, large eyes, a
   long neck, short arms, long legs, and a long tail. A diagnostic
   character of Gallimimus is a distinctly short 'hand' relative to the
   humerus length, when compared to other ornithomimids. The tail was used
   as a counter-balance. The eyes were located on the sides of its head,
   meaning that it did not possess binocular vision. Like most modern
   birds, it had hollow bones. Gallimimus had a number of adaptations
   which suggest good running ability, such as long limbs, a long tibia
   and metatarsus and short toes but it is unknown how fast it could run.

   A fossilized beak is present in one Gallimimus skull and ridges on the
   beak have been interpreted as part of a duck-like filter-feeding
   mechanism. However, similar ridges are seen in herbivorous sea turtles
   and ornithomimids were relatively common in seasonally dry
   environments, where filter-feeding was probably not a viable lifestyle.
   It seems more probable that Gallimimus was an omnivore or herbivore,
   using its beak to crop plants.
   Gallimimus bullatus skull.
   Enlarge
   Gallimimus bullatus skull.

In popular culture

   Although Gallimimus did not appear before the Cretaceous Period, the
   dinosaur appeared on-screen, in the motion picture Jurassic Park. A
   flock of running Gallimimus was seen running across a vast field from a
   Tyrannosaurus, which hunted and killed one of the ornithomimids.
   Gallimimus is also featured in the film's first sequel, The Lost World:
   Jurassic Park, during the 'roundup' sequence.

   Gallimimus is also seen in the Vivendi Universal game Jurassic Park:
   Operation Genesis.
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallimimus"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
