Avimimus

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Avimimus
Temporal range:
Ma
Reconstructed skeleton cast
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Clade: Pennaraptora
Clade: †Oviraptorosauria
Family: †Avimimidae
Kurzanov, 1981
Genus: †Avimimus
Kurzanov, 1981
Type species
†Avimimus portentosus
Kurzanov, 1981
Other species
  • †A. nemegtensis Funston et al., 2018

Avimimus (

theropod dinosaur, named for its bird-like characteristics, that lived in the late Cretaceous in what is now Mongolia
, around 85 to 70 million years ago.

Discovery and species

Skeletal diagram showing some known elements of A. portentosus

The remains of Avimimus were recovered by Russian paleontologists

Djadokta Formation by Kurzanov; however, in a 2006 description of a new specimen, Watabe and colleagues noted that Kurzanov was probably mistaken about the provenance, and it is more likely that Avimimus hailed from the more recent Nemegt Formation.[2] The type species is A. portentosus.[3] Because no tail was found with the original find, Kurzanov mistakenly concluded that Avimimus lacked a tail in life.[1] However, subsequent Avimimus finds containing caudal vertebrae have confirmed the presence of a tail.[1] A second nearly complete specimen of Avimimus was discovered in 1996 and described in 2000 by Watabe and colleagues. Additionally, these authors identified a number of small theropod footprints in the same area as belonging to Avimimus.[4]

A variety of isolated bones that have been attributed to Avimimus were considered to be distinct from A. portentosus, and were initially referred to as Avimimus sp.

gregarious in life, providing possible indications that Avimimus formed age-segregated groups for either lekking or flocking purposes. The adults showed a greater degree of skeletal fusion in the tarsometatarsus and tibiotarsus, and also more prominent muscle scars. The preservation of the bonebeds suggest that they were buried rapidly, uncovered by rapid flow of water, and then buried again a short distance away.[6][7] In 2018, Avimimus sp. was formally described as a new species, A. nemegtensis.[8]

Description

Size of A. portentosus compared to a human

Avimimus was a small, bird-like dinosaur with a length of 1.5 m (5 ft).[1] The skull was small compared to the body, though the brain[1] and eyes were large. The size of the bones which surrounded the brain and were dedicated to protecting it are large.[1] This is also consistent with the hypothesis that Avimimus had a proportionally large brain.[1]

The jaws of Avimimus were thought to form a parrot-like beak lacking teeth, and a thorough review of the holotype specimen's anatomy confirmed that no teeth were preserved, although a series of tooth-like projections along the tip of the premaxilla were.[9] However, subsequently discovered specimens have been reported to preserve small premaxillary teeth.[4] The small teeth or possible lack thereof in Avimimus suggests that it may have been an herbivore or omnivore. Kurzanov himself, however, believed that Avimimus was an insectivore.[1]

The

air sacs
, suggesting that Avimimus is more primitive than these animals.

Restoration of A. portentosus

The forelimbs were relatively short. The bones of the hand were fused together, as in modern birds, and a ridge on the

quill knobs,[1][10] and while Chiappe confirmed the presence of bumps on the ulna, their function remained unclear.[9] Kurzanov was so convinced they were attachment points for feathers that he concluded that Avimimus may have been capable of weak flight.[1] The presence of feathers is now widely accepted, but most paleontologists do not believe Avimimus could fly.[1]

The ilium was almost horizontally oriented, resulting in exceptionally broad hips. Little is known of the tail but the hip suggests that the tail was long. The legs were extremely long and slender, suggesting that Avimimus was a highly specialized runner. The proportions of the leg bones add further weight to the idea of Avimimus was quick on its feet.[1] The animal's shins were long in comparison with its thighs,[1] a trait common among cursorial animals. It also had three-toed feet with narrow pointed claws.

Classification

Partial dentary and nasal bones of A. nemegtensis
Avimimus in left side, front, and top views. Close-up of chest.

Avimimus was originally suggested to be a very close relative of birds, given its unique suite of bird-like features not known in other dinosaurs at the time. In fact, Kurzanov argued that Avimimus, rather than the famous early bird

phylogenetic analyses of dinosaur and bird relationships. Most modern scientists find that Avimimus in fact belongs to a diverse group of bird-like dinosaurs more primitive than Archaeopteryx, the oviraptorosaurs.[11][12]

Kurzanov placed Avimimus in its own family, Avimimidae, in 1981. In 1991,

Elmisaurinae.[13]

The following cladogram follows an analysis by Phil Senter, 2007.[14]

Caenagnathoidea

Avimimus

Caenagnathus

unnamed

Caudipteryx

Microvenator

Oviraptoridae

Oviraptor

unnamed

IGM 100/42

Rinchenia

unnamed
Ingeniinae

Paleoecology

bonebed
of A. nemegtensis reported in 2006

The

period.[16] During the Late Cretaceous period, the land that is now the Barun Goyot Formation had an arid environment with fields of sand dunes and only intermittent streams. It is slightly younger than the nearby Djadochta Formation, and seems to have been slightly wetter.[16] This formation is noteworthy for the exquisite preservation of small and fragile dinosaur skeletons, a rare occurrence considering that these fossils are typically broken up and dispersed when found in other rock formations.[17]

Skull diagram of A. nemegtensis

The region that is preserved in the Barun Goyot Formation was home to the

multituberculate mammals Catopsbaatar catopsaloides, Chulsanbaatar vulgaris and Nemegtbaatar gobiensis, and the marsupial mammal Asiatherium reshetovi and Deltatheridium
pretrituberculare. Numerous dinosaur eggshells found in this region support the presence of sauropods and maniraptors.

See also

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 0-7853-0443-6
    .
  2. S2CID 220413406
    .
  3. ^ a b Kurzanov, S.M. (1981). "An unusual theropod from the Upper Cretaceous of Mongolia Iskopayemyye pozvonochnyye Mongolii (Fossil Vertebrates of Mongolia)." Trudy Sovmestnay Sovetsko-Mongolskay Paleontologiyeskay Ekspeditsiy (Joint Soviet-Mongolian Paleontological Expedition), 15: 39-49. Nauka Moscow, 1981
  4. ^ a b Watabe, Weishampel; Barsbold, Tsogtbaatar; Suzuke (2000). "New nearly complete skeleton of the bird-like theropod, Avimimus, from the Upper Cretaceous of the Gobi Desert, Mongolia". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 20 (3): 77A.
  5. S2CID 220414868
    .
  6. doi:10.1080/02724634.2008.10010459
    .
  7. PMID 27767062
    .
  8. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2017.10.023
    .
  9. ^
    ISBN 0-520-20094-2
  10. ^ a b Kurzanov, S.M. (1987). "Avimimidae and the problem of the origin of birds." Transactions of the Joint Soviet-Mongolian Paleontological Expedition, 31: 5-92. [in Russian]
  11. ^ Dyke; Thorley (1998). "Reduced cladistic consensus methods and the avian affinities of Protoavis and Avimimus". Archaeopteryx. 16: 123–129.
  12. S2CID 2519726
    .
  13. ^ Holtz, Thomas R. Jr. (2010) Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages, Winter 2010 Appendix.
  14. S2CID 83726237
    .
  15. ISBN 978-0-521-78142-8
    .
  16. ^
    doi:10.1016/0195-6671(91)90015-5
    .
  17. ^ Novacek, M. J., 1996. "Dinosaurs of the Flaming. Cliffs" Anchor/Doubleday. 367 p.
  18. doi:10.1111/j.1475-4983.2010.00968.x
    .
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