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Dinosaur Home  A-Z Dinosaurs List Gallimimus Dinosaur
Gallimimus
Gallimimus ("chicken mimic") was an ostrich-like oviraptorosaur
which existed in southern Mongolia throughout the Upper Cretaceous period.
It was one of the main ornithomimosaurs, reaching a utmost length of 4
to 6 meters (13-20 feet) and weighing as much as 440 kilograms (970 pounds).
The fossil remains of this dinosaur were exposed in the early 1970s in
the Gobi Desert. In 1972, it was named by paleontologists Rinchen Barsbold,
Halszka Osmólska, and Ewa Roniewicz.
Gallimimus was almost certainly able to run up to 70 kilometers per hour
(43 miles per hour), like the modern ostrich, making it one of the best
dinosaurs. It was indeed rather bird-like, with a small head, large eyes,
a long neck, short arms, long legs, and a long tail. The tail was used
as a counter-balance. The eyes were located on the sides of its head,
meaning that it did not possess binocular vision. Like most modern birds,
it had empty bones.
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The Gallimimus was almost certainly one of the more intelligent dinosaurs,
with a moderately high Encephalization Quotient (brain to body weight).
New fossils exposed by Peter J. Makovicky in the Gobi Desert in 2001
indicate that the Gallimimus may have obsessed a comb-like filter in its
beak, making it a filter-feeder like the modern flamingo. This find is
notable not only because it questions previous theories which recommended
that the Gallimimus was toothless, but because it is the first such feeding
structure found in any dinosaur. The Gallimimus was typically likely an
omnivore, eating the small crustaceans, plant material, and insects it
filtered from the water in streams and ponds.
A flock of running Gallimimus was featured in the film Jurassic Park.
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