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Pelicanimimus

Dinosaur profile

Pelicanimimus

CarnivoreEarly CretaceousSmall Theropod

Pronunciation

pel-e-kan-i-mim-us

Meaning

Pelican mimic

Type

Small Theropod

Length

2 meters long

Period

Early Cretaceous

Years

127-121 million years ago

Location

Spain

Diet

Carnivore

About Pelicanimimus

Pelicanimimus is a small, bird-like dinosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous period, about 130-125 million years ago. It was discovered in Spain in the 1990s and is known from a single well-preserved skeleton. Pelicanimimus had a long, slender neck, a small head with long, toothless jaws, and a long, feathered tail. It probably had feathers covering its body as well, though these have not been preserved in the fossil record. The most distinctive feature of Pelicanimimus was the presence of long, pelican-like bills on its jaws, which may have been used to filter small prey from water or to strip leaves from plants. Despite its bird-like appearance, Pelicanimimus was not a true bird, but rather a member of the group of dinosaurs known as theropods, which also includes more familiar species like Tyrannosaurus and Velociraptor.

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