Page 137 - The Dinosaur Book and Other Wonders of the Prehistoric World (DK-Smithsonian)

TINY SKULL

The skull of Mononykus was only slightly longer
than a chicken egg. But its brain was quite large
compared to its body size, suggesting that it was
relatively intelligent. Its eyes were unusually big,
Epidexipteryx Ornitholestes indicating that they probably worked well in dim
light, so it may have been most active at night or
during the twilight of dawn and dusk.

Shuvuuia These animals had Feathered hunters
relatively large brains and
big eyes—both important
for their flying descendants.

2 in (5 cm) long
Chicken egg
Small hunters with
feather-fringed tails The large eye socket
may have curled them suggests Mononykus
over their sleeping had very good vision.
bodies to keep warm.

2 ⁄4 in (6 cm) long
1
Mononykus skull

Mononykus was a small dinosaur
from the plains of Mongolia.
Mononykus
had a small skull. Mononykus

The long feathers
on the arms were The short arms had a
for show, and for single large claw that it
protecting eggs and could have used to dig
young, but in other
Mei long insects out of dead wood.
animals they became
adapted for flight.

Mei long had
A dense covering of ornamental feathers
body feathers kept on its legs as well as
this animal warm. its arms.

a bird, but extend its arms and add some longer Epidexipteryx clearly shows four very long,
feathers, and it might look ready for take-off. ornamental tail feathers. This type of feathering
The fossils of similar animals, like Velociraptor, made small hunters such as Mei long look like
show that they had long, birdlike feathers short-winged pheasants or chickens, and if they
sprouting from their arms, and many also were alive today we would instantly recognize
had feathery fans on their tails. A fossil of them as flightless birds. 135

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