Genus of dinosaurs from the Late Cretaceous Period
Gallimimus
Temporal range: Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian), 70 Ma
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S
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C
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Reconstructed skeleton (based on the adult holotype and a juvenile specimen), Natural History Museum
Scientific classification
Domain:
Eukaryota
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Clade:
Dinosauria
Clade:
Saurischia
Clade:
Theropoda
Clade:
†Ornithomimosauria
Family:
†Ornithomimidae
Genus:
†Gallimimus Osmólska et al., 1972
Species:
†G. bullatus
Binomial name
†Gallimimus bullatus
Osmólska et al., 1972
Synonyms
Ornithomimus bullatus Paul, 1988
Gallimimus (/ˌɡælɪˈmaɪməs/GAL-im-EYE-məs) is a genus of theropod dinosaur that lived in what is now Mongolia during the Late Cretaceous period, about seventy million years ago (mya). Several fossils in various stages of growth were discovered by Polish-Mongolian expeditions in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia during the 1960s; a large skeleton discovered in this region was made the holotype specimen of the new genus and species Gallimimus bullatus in 1972. The generic name means "chicken mimic", referring to the similarities between its neck vertebrae and those of the Galliformes. The specific name is derived from bulla, a golden capsule worn by Roman youth, in reference to a bulbous structure at the base of the skull of Gallimimus. At the time it was named, the fossils of Gallimimus represented the most complete and best preserved ornithomimid ("ostrich dinosaur") material yet discovered, and the genus remains one of the best known members of the group.
Gallimimus is the largest known ornithomimid; adults were about 6 metres (20 ft) long, 1.9 metres (6 ft 3 in) tall at the hip and weighed about 400–490 kilograms (880–1,080 lb). As evidenced by its relative Ornithomimus, it would have had feathers. The head was small and light with large eyes that faced to the sides. The snout was long compared to other ornithomimids, although it was broader and more rounded at the tip than in other species. Gallimimus was toothless with a keratinous (horny) beak, and had a delicate lower jaw. Many of the vertebrae had openings that indicate they were pneumatic (air-filled). The neck was proportionally long in relation to the trunk. The hands were proportionally the shortest of any ornithomimosaur and each had three digits with curved claws. The forelimbs were weak while the hindlimbs were proportionally long. The family Ornithomimidae is part of the group Ornithomimosauria. Anserimimus, also from Mongolia, is thought to have been the closest relative of Gallimimus.
As an ornithomimid, Gallimimus would have been a fleet (or cursorial) animal, using its speed to escape predators; its speed has been estimated at 42–56 km/h (29–34 mph). It may have had good vision and intelligence comparable to ratite birds. Gallimimus may have lived in groups, based on the discovery of several specimens preserved in a bone bed. Various theories have been proposed regarding the diet of Gallimimus and other ornithomimids. The highly mobile neck may have helped locate small prey on the ground, but it may also have been an opportunistic omnivore. It has also been suggested that it used small columnar structures in its beak for filter-feeding in water, though these structures may instead have been ridges used for feeding on tough plant material, indicative of a herbivorous diet. Gallimimus is the most commonly found ornithomimosaur in the Nemegt Formation, where it lived alongside its relatives Anserimimus and Deinocheirus. Gallimimus was featured in the movie Jurassic Park, in a scene that was important to the history of special effects, and in shaping the common conception of dinosaurs as bird-like animals.
bulbous structure at the base of the skull of Gallimimus. At the time it was named, the fossils of Gallimimus represented the most complete and best preserved...
killing a Gallimimus, which was inspired by a scene in The Valley of Gwangi. Horse squeals were used to provide the Gallimimus vocal sounds. Gallimimus returns...
More advanced species, members of the family Ornithomimidae, include Gallimimus, Struthiomimus, and Ornithomimus. Some paleontologists, like Paul Sereno...
from the lower Lance Formation and equivalents are larger (similar to Gallimimus in size) and tend to have straighter and more elongate hand claws, similar...
looked like the "product of a secret love affair between a hadrosaur and Gallimimus". Combined with the poached elements, both new specimens represent almost...
have been controversial. In 2001 Norell et al. reported a specimen of Gallimimus (IGM 100/1133) and one of Ornithomimus (RTMP 95.110.1). These two fossil...
related to but more derived than the contemporary hadrosauroid Gobihadros. "Gallimimus mongoliensis" is an informal name Rinchen Barsbold used for a nearly complete...
complete, mounted and unmounted, originals and casts) and reconstructions. "Gallimimus". Museums Victoria Collections. Retrieved 2022-05-03. "Tarbosaurus bataar"...
additional scenes at its ending, set in the present day. These included a Gallimimus running through a neighborhood, and a Mosasaurus attacking a crab-fishing...
abstract agreed with Weishampel by noting that Coelosaurus differs from Gallimimus and Ornithomimus in the features of the tibiae. In 1988, Gregory S. Paul...
Sinornithomimus, Gallimimus, and Harpymimus. The calcaneum (another tarsal bone) is also more exposed in Afromimus. Unlike Sinornithomimus and Gallimimus, the fibular...
2021 (2021-05-21) Kenji lets Darius go off alone to observe a group of Gallimimus for his notebook, but after a sudden stampede of dinosaurs, Darius discovers...
L. L.; Koppelhus, E. B. (2018). "Theropod trackways associated with a Gallimimus foot skeleton from the Nemegt Formation, Mongolia". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology...
films, primarily in Jurassic Park, when the Tyrannosaurus pounces on the Gallimimus. The smaller dinosaur had never appeared on the film screen before and...
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