Pelecanimimus

Filed under Cretaceous dinosaurs · Types of Dinosaurs editorial team

Order: Saurischia · Suborder: Theropoda · Infraorder: Ornithomimosauria

Pelecanimimus was an early ornithomimosaur — a relative of the so-called "ostrich dinosaurs" — that lived during the Early Cretaceous period in what is now Spain. Reaching roughly six to eight feet in length, it was a lightly built animal, and its name, meaning "pelican mimic," reflects one of its most striking features: soft-tissue impressions preserved in the fossil suggest the presence of a throat pouch reminiscent of a modern pelican's.

What sets Pelecanimimus apart most dramatically from its later relatives is its teeth. While more advanced ornithomimosaurs evolved toothless beaks, Pelecanimimus retained well over two hundred small teeth packed tightly into its elongated jaws — an extraordinary count for any dinosaur. This dental arrangement points toward an omnivorous diet, and its slender, fleet-footed build suggests it was likely a quick and opportunistic feeder.

As one of the most primitive ornithomimosaurs currently known to science, Pelecanimimus occupies an important position in understanding how this distinctive dinosaur group evolved. Its combination of primitive and derived features offers paleontologists a valuable window into the early history of ornithomimosaurs before their characteristic toothless beaks became the norm.

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Reference background: Natural History Museum, London — Dinosaurs; Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History — Dinosaurs; American Museum of Natural History — Dinosaurs & Fossils. Figures are typical published ranges; taxonomy follows the source era and modern consensus is noted where it differs. See our sources & fact-check policy.

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