Pelecanimimus endocranial cavity paleoneuroanatomy (free pdf)
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Ben Creisler
Jun 12, 2026, 3:12:20 PM (6 days ago) Jun 12
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Ben Creisler
Xairo Calvo-Pérez & Elena Cuesta (2026)
Inside the head of Pelecanimimus polyodon (Ornithomimosauria, Dinosauria): Occipital palaeoneuroanatomy of the early branching ornithomimosaur from Las Hoyas fossil site (Early Cretaceous, Cuenca, Spain).
Spanish Journal of Palaeontology (advance online publication)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7203/sjp.33856
https://turia.uv.es/index.php/sjpalaeontology/en/article/view/33856
Free pdf:
https://turia.uv.es/index.php/sjpalaeontology/en/article/view/33856/35232
Ornithomimosauria is a striking theropod dinosaur group whose unusual traits have generated debate about several behaviours related to diet and lifestyle. Although the palaeoneuroanatomy might provide valuable information to palaeobiological studies of this group, these studies are scarce. Only the endocast of Struthiomimus is known, despite several complete skulls having been recovered in this group. In other non-avian maniraptoriforms, palaeoneuroanatomical studies are not overly plentiful either, restricting themselves to well-characterised endocasts within Therizinosauria and Oviraptorosauria. Here, we present the palaeoneuroanatomy of the endocranial cavity of Pelecanimimus polyodon, an ornithomimosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Cuenca (Spain). The occipital region of its braincase is studied using CT scans, providing information about the inner ear, the hindbrain, cranial nerves, and vascular tracts. Its endocranial morphology is similar to Struthiomimus and follows the evolutionary trends of Coelurosauria. Pelecanimimus shows a reduced and posterior dural peak, and elongated semicircular canals; thus, good gaze stabilisation is inferred and strongly agrees with the non-avian to avian brain evolution. The lagena of Pelecanimimus is short, so high-frequency values of hearing are inferred for the taxon compared with other non-avian theropods. Those results are expected for an early-branching maniraptoriform, and positively contribute to our knowledge of the evolution of Coelurosauria and Theropoda.
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Free pdf:
Xairo Calvo-Pérez & Elena Cuesta (2026)
Inside the head of Pelecanimimus polyodon (Ornithomimosauria, Dinosauria): Occipital palaeoneuroanatomy of the early branching ornithomimosaur from Las Hoyas fossil site (Early Cretaceous, Cuenca, Spain).
Spanish Journal of Palaeontology (advance online publication)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7203/sjp.33856
https://turia.uv.es/index.php/sjpalaeontology/en/article/view/33856
Free pdf:
https://turia.uv.es/index.php/sjpalaeontology/en/article/view/33856/35232
Ornithomimosauria is a striking theropod dinosaur group whose unusual traits have generated debate about several behaviours related to diet and lifestyle. Although the palaeoneuroanatomy might provide valuable information to palaeobiological studies of this group, these studies are scarce. Only the endocast of Struthiomimus is known, despite several complete skulls having been recovered in this group. In other non-avian maniraptoriforms, palaeoneuroanatomical studies are not overly plentiful either, restricting themselves to well-characterised endocasts within Therizinosauria and Oviraptorosauria. Here, we present the palaeoneuroanatomy of the endocranial cavity of Pelecanimimus polyodon, an ornithomimosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Cuenca (Spain). The occipital region of its braincase is studied using CT scans, providing information about the inner ear, the hindbrain, cranial nerves, and vascular tracts. Its endocranial morphology is similar to Struthiomimus and follows the evolutionary trends of Coelurosauria. Pelecanimimus shows a reduced and posterior dural peak, and elongated semicircular canals; thus, good gaze stabilisation is inferred and strongly agrees with the non-avian to avian brain evolution. The lagena of Pelecanimimus is short, so high-frequency values of hearing are inferred for the taxon compared with other non-avian theropods. Those results are expected for an early-branching maniraptoriform, and positively contribute to our knowledge of the evolution of Coelurosauria and Theropoda.
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