Sinornithomimus
"Chinese bird mimic"
- Lived
- 94 to 90 million years ago, Late Cretaceous
- Diet
- Omnivore
- Group
- Theropods, Ornithomimidae
- Found in
- China
- Named by
- Kobayashi and Lü 2003
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
90 million years ago
Habitat
Lakes and ponds that sometimes dried out lay in what is now northern China. The Ulansuhai Formation also contains Chilantaisaurus and Sinocephale.
Field notes
About Sinornithomimus
What it was like
Sinornithomimus was an ostrich-like dinosaur with long legs, a long neck and a toothless beak. Many skeletons have been found, mostly of young animals, and some have small stones in the belly that probably helped grind plants.
Its world
It lived in the Late Cretaceous in what is now northern China. Its bones come from the Ulansuhai Formation, where it shared the land with the big hunter Chilantaisaurus.
How it was found
Kobayashi and Lü named Sinornithomimus in 2003. More than a dozen skeletons were found together, which suggests a group of young animals died at the same time, perhaps trapped in mud.
Field gallery
More views of Sinornithomimus
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
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Lived alongside
Found in the same rock formations
A rock formation can hold fossils laid down millions of years apart, so not every animal here met Sinornithomimus.
The evidence
The science behind Sinornithomimus
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- Many well-preserved skeletons show a toothless beak, long neck and long legs.
- Clusters of small stones lie inside the rib cages, probably used to grind food in the stomach.
- A group of young animals died together with their legs trapped in mud.
Borrowed from relatives
- Almost the whole skeleton is known from its own bones.
- It probably had a coat of feathers like Ornithomimus, which preserves feathers on young animals and adults.
Still unknown
- Its feather arrangement and color.
- Exactly which foods it ate.
- Whether adults cared for the young after they joined juvenile groups.
Discovery timeline
- 1999How it fedKobayashi et al.
- 2003Named itKobayashi & Lü
- 2008Growing upVarricchio et al.
- 2012Close relativeZelenitsky et al.
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Sinornithomimus
How it fed
Reported stomach stones in the skeletons later named Sinornithomimus and proposed that they helped grind plant food.
Herbivorous diet in an ornithomimid dinosaur. Nature 402: 480-481
Read the paper : Herbivorous diet in an ornithomimid dinosaur (opens in a new tab)Named it
Named Sinornithomimus from a group of well-preserved skeletons and described its toothless skull, limbs and growth-related changes in body proportions.
A new ornithomimid dinosaur with gregarious habits from the Late Cretaceous of China. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 48: 235-259
No link available
Growing up
Found that a mud-trapped group consisted entirely of immature Sinornithomimus, supporting the idea that young animals formed their own herds.
Mud-Trapped Herd Captures Evidence of Distinctive Dinosaur Sociality. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 53: 567-578
Read the paper : Mud-Trapped Herd Captures Evidence of Distinctive Dinosaur Sociality (opens in a new tab)Close relative
Found body feathers in young and adult Ornithomimus, with winglike arm feathers in older animals.
Feathered Non-Avian Dinosaurs from North America Provide Insight into Wing Origins. Science 338: 510-514
Read the paper : Feathered Non-Avian Dinosaurs from North America Provide Insight into Wing Origins (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Ornithomimidae
Sources: Wikidata