Ornithomimid is a dinosaur species that lived during the late Cretaceous period. The word is spelled /ɔrnɪθoʊˈmɪd/ (or-nih-tho-mid) in IPA phonetic transcription. This spelling is derived from the Greek words ornithos, meaning "bird," and mimos, meaning "mimic." Ornithomimids are also called "ostrich dinosaurs" due to their similarities with modern-day ostriches. These creatures were bipedal and had long slender limbs and small heads. Several species of ornithomimids have been discovered in North America and Asia, making them an important part of dinosaur evolution.
Ornithomimid is a noun referring to a member of the family Ornithomimidae, which is a group of bird-like dinosaurs. The word originates from the Greek words "ornis" meaning "bird" and "mimos" meaning "mimic" or "imitator." Ornithomimids were bipedal dinosaurs that lived during the Late Cretaceous period, approximately 70 to 66 million years ago.
The ornithomimids are characterized by their slender, ostrich-like bodies, long necks, and toothless beaks. They had a bipedal locomotion, with their hind limbs being longer and more developed than their forelimbs. Ornithomimids were generally fast runners, believed to have reached speeds of up to 40 miles per hour. They ranged in size from small, turkey-sized species to larger ones, such as the well-known Gallimimus, which could reach lengths of over 20 feet.
These dinosaurs are considered as cursorial animals, meaning they were adapted for running on open ground. They likely had a varied diet, consisting of plants, small animals, and insects. Ornithomimids are known from fossil discoveries in North America and Asia. They played an important role in the Late Cretaceous ecosystems as herbivores or omnivores and likely filled niches similar to modern-day ostriches or emus.
Today, the term ornithomimid is widely used in paleontological research to specifically describe and identify this group of bird-like dinosaurs.
The word "ornithomimid" derives from the combination of two Greek roots: "ornitho-" meaning "bird", and "-mimos" meaning "mimic" or "imitator". Therefore, "ornithomimid" translates to "bird imitator". The term was coined to describe a group of bipedal dinosaur species that shared certain bird-like characteristics, such as long necks, sharp beaks, and feathers.