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Palaeontology

The beaks of ostrich dinosaurs

Nature volume 412, pages 873–874 (2001)Cite this article

Abstract

Primitive ornithomimids, a ubiquitous group of specialized Cretaceous dinosaurs nested within a clade of predominantly carnivorous theropods, are known to have had teeth, whereas derived ornithomimids had an edentulous beak, which has prompted speculation about their dietary habits1. Here we describe two new ornithomimid specimens in which soft-tissue structures of the beak have been preserved. These creatures probably used their beaks to strain food sediment in an aqueous environment, rather than for predation on large animals.

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Figure 1: Two ornithomimid specimens, showing preservation of soft-tissue structures of the beak.
Figure 2

COURTESY OF MIKE SKREPNICK

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, 10024-5192, New York, USA

    Mark A. Norell & Peter J. Makovicky

  2. Field Museum, 1400 South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, 60605-2496, Illinois, USA

    Peter J. Makovicky

  3. Royal Tyrell Museum of Palaeontology, Drumheller, T0J 0Y0, Alberta, Canada

    Philip J. Currie

Authors
  1. Mark A. Norell
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  2. Peter J. Makovicky
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  3. Philip J. Currie
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mark A. Norell.

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Norell, M., Makovicky, P. & Currie, P. The beaks of ostrich dinosaurs. Nature 412, 873–874 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/35091139

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