Open Paleo

Sinornithomimus

Kobayashi & Lü, 2003 sy-nor-NITH-oh-MY-mus

From Latin 'Sinae' (China) + Greek 'ornis' (bird) + Latin 'mimus' (mimic, imitator), meaning 'Chinese bird mimic', reflecting its Chinese origin and ornithomimid (bird-mimicking) classification.

93.9–89.8 million years ago Turonian, Late Cretaceous
Late Cretaceous stages

Sinornithomimus is a genus of ornithomimid dinosaur that lived in the Late Cretaceous Ulansuhai Formation of Alshanzuo Banner, Inner Mongolia, northern China. The first remains were found in 1997 and described six years later in 2003 as the new genus and species Sinornithomimus dongi.

Diagnosis

  1. Depression on dorsolateral surface of posterior process of parietal
  2. Fenestra within quadratic fossa divided into two by vertical lamina
  3. Low ridge on ventral surface of parasphenoid bulla
  4. Loss of posterolateral extension of the proatlas

Species

Sinornithomimus dongi Kobayashi & Lü, 2003

Type species

Named for Dong Zhiming, the Chinese paleontologist who discovered the fossils during the Mongol Highland International Dinosaur Project in 1997.

Holotype
IVPP V11797-10 , Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology
Material
Nearly complete skeleton, subadult, 32 cm femur, lacks posterior caudal vertebrae
Horizon
Ulansuhai Formation, Turonian, Late Cretaceous , 93.9–89.8 million years ago
Locality
Ulan Suhai, Inner Mongolia, China

References

  1. Kobayashi, Y.; Lü, J. (2003). A new ornithomimid dinosaur with gregarious habits from the Late Cretaceous of China. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 48(2): 235-259. doi:10.5281/zenodo.13315375 kobayashi2003b
  2. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Theropods. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the hip height estimate, and the appearance features.

    jones2026c