Dino card No. 1401 of 2,027

Pelecanimimus

Say it: pel-e-KAN-i-MIM-us

Name means: “pelican mimic”1 2

Ate: MeatOstrich dinosEarly Cretaceous

Pelecanimimus was a small, fast dinosaur that looked a bit like a pelican. It had a long snout and a pouch of skin under its chin, just like modern pelicans use to scoop up fish!1 2

Lived

126 to 121 million years ago3

Early Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Las Hoyas, Cuenca Province, Spain1 3

Food

Meat1 2

Length

1.9 to 2.5 m1

estimates vary

Weight

17 kg to 30 kg1

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

as long as 1.5 bicycles in a rowas long as 14 bananas end to endas heavy as 8 house catsas heavy as 6 watermelons

How big was Pelecanimimus compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Pelecanimimus had about 220 tiny teeth in its mouth, more than any other meat-eating dinosaur.1

Its teeth were different shapes: front teeth were broad and D-shaped, while back teeth were blade-like.1

Fossils show that Pelecanimimus had a throat pouch like a pelican, probably used to store prey.1 2

It also had a small crest on the back of its head, made of skin or keratin.1

Pelecanimimus lived about 125 million years ago during the Early Cretaceous in what is now Spain.1 3

Only the front half of one skeleton has been found, but it includes amazing details like skin impressions and throat bones.1

AI-made picture of Pelecanimimus — An AI-made picture of how Pelecanimimus might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Pelecanimimus

?How big was Pelecanimimus?

About 1.9 to 2.5 metres long and weighed 17 to 30 kilograms. That is about as long as a large bicycle.1 2

?What did Pelecanimimus eat?

It was carnivorous, meaning it ate meat. It probably waded in lakes or ponds to catch fish with its claws and many teeth, storing them in its throat pouch.1 2

?Did Pelecanimimus have feathers?

No, the preserved skin impressions show wrinkled skin that lacked scales or feathers. Some filament-like structures were once thought to be feathers, but they are now seen as muscle fibers.1

?When did Pelecanimimus live?

It lived during the Early Cretaceous period, about 127 to 121 million years ago.2

?Where was Pelecanimimus found?

In Spain, at a famous fossil site called Las Hoyas in Cuenca Province.1 2

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Myth buster

Myth: Some people think Pelecanimimus could fly because of its large chest bones.

Truth: Scientists are not sure, but most think it was a ground dinosaur, not a flier.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Pelecanimimus
Named by: Pérez-Moreno et al. 19943
Group: Ostrich dinos
Family / clade: Ornithomimosauria3
Classification: Theropoda > Ornithomimosauria3
Age of the rocks: 126 to 121 million years (Barremian)3
Rock formations: La Huérguina3
Countries: Spain3
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: Armando Díaz Romeral found the first skeleton in 1993 in Spain. Scientists named it Pelecanimimus polyodon in 1994.1 2
Still debated: Scientists still debate whether Pelecanimimus could fly or if its large chest muscles were for something else.1

Where the facts come from

Pelecanimimus (en.wikipedia.org)
Pelecanimimus | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
Pelecanimimus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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