The Big Dinosaur Podcast

Episode 221 is all about Dromiceiomimus, likely one of the fastest dinosaurs of the Mesozoic.

Interview with Eric Przybyszewski, a student at Montana State University’s Department of Earth Sciences and researcher at Two Medicine Dinosaur Center in Bynum, Montana. He is the lead author of the team working on a newly found dinosaur nesting site in Montana. You can also check out TMDC dig programs, one of their egg CT scans, or Eric’s posts on the fossil forum.

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In this episode, we discuss:

News:

• A new enantiornithine from China, Shangyang, the “rain bird” was described with a fused premaxilla source
• Mnyamawamtuka moyowamkia, found in Tanzania is one of the most complete early titanosaurs found to date source
• New legislation may define fossils as part of a property’s surface rights to prevent future lawsuits source
• The National Museum in Brazil has recovered about 2,000 items following the massive fire last year source
• The Sternberg Museum of Natural History has opened its new Oceans of Kansas Fossil Prep Lab source
• Boonshoft Museum of Discovery has a Dinosaur Discovery exhibit up from now through April in Ohio source
• BBC has a new film called My Pet Dinosaur including dinosaur science and science fiction source

The dinosaur of the day: Dromiceiomimus

• Ornithomimid that lived in the Late Cretaceous in what is now Alberta, Canada
• Type species is Dromiceiomimus brevitertius
• Looked like an ostrich (though not as many feathers–may have had some feathers)
• About 11.5 ft (3.5 m) long and weighed about 220 lb (100 kg)
• Had large eyes
• Had long forelimbs
• Had a beak, and weak, toothless jaws
• Omnivore, may have eaten plants, insects, possibly some small animals like lizards or mammals
• Could move fast
• One study found that Dromiceiomimus may have been faster than its relatives Ornithomimus and Struthiomimus
• May have been able to run up to 45 to 50 mph (72 to 80 kph)
• Found in 1926 by William Parks and originally described as Struthiomimus (found in the Horseshoe Canyon Formation)
• Named Dromiceiomimus in 1972 by Dale Russell
• Name means “Emu mimic” (scientific name for emu is Dromiceius)
• Russell also synonymized Struthiomimus ingens with Dromiceiomimus brevitertius
• And Russell renamed Ornithomimus samueli to Dromiceiomimus samueli
• Then in 1981 Nicholls and Russell said Dromiceiomimus may not be a valid genus, though they thought the limb proportions were different enough to keep it distinct from Ornithomimus
• Mackovicky and others found there was not a distinction between the two and synonmized Dromiceiomimus with Ornithomimus edmontonicus
• Not everyone agreed
• In 2018 Ian McDonald and Phil Currie found that the ratio of the tibia and femur of one Dromiceiomimus specimen (found in 1967) was different from Ornithomimus edmontonicus

Fun Fact: Kiwi eggs weigh ~25% of their body weight, the largest ratio of any known dinosaur.

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This episode is brought to you in part by Indiana University Press. Their Life of the Past series is lavishly illustrated and meticulously documented to showcase the latest findings and most compelling interpretations in the ever-changing field of paleontology. Find their books at iupress.indiana.edu