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ORNITHOMIMUS "Bird mimic" Ornithomimus printout

ANATOMY
Ornithomimus was an ostrich-like dinosaur with a toothless, horny beak, a small head, large eyes, a relatively large brain, a long neck, long tail, long legs, and hollow bones. It was about 15-20 feet long (4.5-6 m) and 6-8 feet (1.8-2.4 m) tall. About half of its length was its neck and tail. It had short arms with three clawed fingers on each hand, and long legs with three clawed toes on each foot. A long tail acted as a counterbalance and as a stabilizer during fast turns. Its bones were hollow.

WHEN ORNITHOMIMUS LIVED
Ornithomimus lived in the late Cretaceous period, about 76-65 million years ago. Among the contemporaries of Ornithomimus in North America were Albertosaurus, Parasaurolophus, Euoplocephalus, Kritosaurus, and Nanotyrannus.

DIET
Ornithomimus was an omnivore, eating both plant and animal matter, including insects, small reptiles and mammals, eggs, fruit, and leaves.

LOCOMOTION
Ornithomimus walked on two long, slender legs. It was a fast, agile dinosaur, probably running about as quickly as an ostrich , which can run up to 43 mph (70 kph).

INTELLIGENCE
Ornithomimus was a theropod and among the smartest of the dinosaurs.

DISCOVERY OF FOSSILS
The first Ornithomimus fossil was found near Denver, Colorado, USA in 1889, and was named by paleontologist Othniel C. Marsh in 1890. Ornithomimus fossils have been found in North America and Mongolia.

ORNITHOMIMUS ACTIVITY
Ornithomimus printout

CLASSIFICATION
Ornithomimus belonged to the:

• Kingdom Animalia (animals)
• Phylum Chordata (having a hollow nerve chord ending in a brain)
• Class Archosauria (diapsids with socket-set teeth, etc.)
• Order Saurischia - lizard-hipped dinosaurs
• Suborder Theropoda - bipedal carnivores
• Infraorder Coelurosauria - lightly-built fast-running predators with hollow bones and large brains
• Superfamily Maniraptoriformes - advanced coelurosaurs with a fused wrist bone
• Family Ornithomimosauria - ostrich mimics, the fastest dinosaurs. Had large eyes.
• Genus Ornithomimus
• species velox (the type species)

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