Mononykus
Mononykus | |
---|---|
Reconstructed skeleton at the American Museum of Natural History | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Clade: | Dinosauria |
Clade: | Saurischia |
Clade: | Theropoda |
Family: | †Alvarezsauridae |
Subfamily: | † Parvicursorinae
|
Tribe: | † Mononykini
|
Genus: | †Mononykus Perle et al., 1993 |
Type species | |
†Mononykus olecranus Perle et al., 1993
| |
Synonyms | |
Mononychus olecranus Perle et al., 1993 (preoccupied generic name) |
Mononykus (
Mononykus was a very small theropod, estimated around 1 to 1.2 metres (3.3 to 3.9 ft) in length with a weight of 3.5 kilograms (7.7 lb). As in
History of discovery
Mononykus is represented by a single
While Mononykus was formally described in the 1990s, it was reported that a specimen possibly belonging to this genus had already been unearthed by the Andrews expedition decades before. The specimen had been in the American Museum of Natural History collection, labeled simply as "bird-like dinosaur".[6] However, given the reassignment of the other specimens to related genera, and the difference in age (the AMNH specimen is from the older Djadochta Formation), it is unlikely to be Mononykus.[7]
In 2019, Sungjin Lee and colleagues referred a new specimen from the Nemegt Formation, MPC-D 100/206. This specimen consists of seven caudal vertebrae with a partial left hindlimb, and was discovered on a low slope of the Altan Uul III locality in 2008 by an international team of the Korea-Mongolia International Dinosaur Expedition (KID). The team also found a small assemblage of theropod fossils comprising specimens from other taxa such as Gobiraptor and Nemegtonykus.[8]
Description
Mononykus was a small dinosaur around 1 to 1.2 metres (3.3 to 3.9 ft) long and weighing 3.5 kilograms (7.7 lb).
Paleobiology
Mononykus was a member of the family
In a 2001 study conducted by Bruce Rothschild and other paleontologists, 15 foot bones referred to Mononykus were examined for signs of stress fracture, but none were found.[13]
References
- doi:10.1038/362623a0.
- hdl:2246/4936.
- doi:10.1038/363188a0.
- ^ Suzuki, S., Chiappe, L. M., Dyke, G.J., Watabe, M., Barsbold, R., and Tsogtbaatar, K. (2002). "A new specimen of Shuvuuia deserti Chiappe et al., 1998 from the Mongolian Late Cretaceous with a discussion of the relationships of alvarezsaurids to other theropod dinosaurs." Contributions in Science, 494: 1–18.
- ^ Chiappe, L. M., Norell, M. and Clark (1998). "The skull of a relative of the stem-group bird Mononykus." Nature, 392: 275–278.
- ^ Dinosaurs of the Gobi. Mongolia: BBC Horizon. 1993.
- ^ Mortimer, M. (2004), "Ornithomimosauria" Archived 2013-09-29 at the Wayback Machine, The Theropod Database, accessed June 30, 2009.
- PMID 31664171.
- ISBN 9780691167664.
- ^ Schweitzer, M. H., J. A. Watt, R. Avci, L. Knapp, L. Chiappe, M. Norell & M. Marshall. (1999). "Beta-keratin specific immunological reactivity in feather-like structures of the Cretaceous alvarezsaurid, Shuvuuia deserti." Journal of Experimental Zoology, 285: 146–157.
- ^ Senter, P. (2005). "Function in the stunted forelimbs of Mononykus olecranus (Theropoda), a dinosaurian anteater". Paleobiology Vol. 31, No. 3 pp. 373–381.
- ^ Rothschild, B., Tanke, D. H., and Ford, T. L., 2001, Theropod stress fractures and tendon avulsions as a clue to activity: In: Mesozoic Vertebrate Life, edited by Tanke, D. H., and Carpenter, K., Indiana University Press, p. 331–336.