Avimimus
        
                

                Avimimus is a bird like theropod                 
                found from the Upper Cretaceous
                of Mongolia.  The skull of Avimimus
                is very avian like, however the flight
                capabilities are speculative due to the
                lack of a fossilized shoulder girdle.
                There is some evidence that Avimimus
                could have had feathers.  Small ridges
                are present along the forearm that could
                represent anchor points for feather
                shafts.  Modern birds have bone
                "dimples" at the point of feather                   
                attachment, however the ridges
                present in Avimimus could be a
                preadaptation to present feather
                attachment (Chatterjee 1999).    
               
                Above - Dinosaur Image Gallery
                    Above Right -  Kurzanov 1981 - skeleton