Saturday, September 12, 2015

Shenzhousaurus Saturday ‭(‬Shenzhou lizard‭)‬.




 Along with Sinornithomimus,‭ ‬Shenzhousaurus is one of the few ornithomimosaurs that are known to have had gastroliths inside their stomachs.‭ ‬This has led to the suggestion that Shenzhousaurus had a greater leaning towards a herbivorous diet since gastroliths are usually associated with herbivorous animals.‭ ‬However it is not unknown for some predatory animals to have them,‭ ‬including the theropod dinosaur Lourinhanosaurus.‭
       The presence of teeth in the lower jaw also confirms the placement of Shenzhousaurus as a basal ornithomimosaur since later forms would just have a toothless keratinous beak.
 

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