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Re: Suspicions of Integument on Pelicanimimus After All

From: "TIMOTHY BRIDGEMAN" <timlee3005@earthlink.net> 

The skin impressions on the anterior part of Pelicanimimus polyodon show it
to be smooth,with neither feathery integument OR scales.Am I justified in
the thought that (due to lack of scales,where as all other impressions that
didn't show feathers DID show scales) maybe any integument it may have had
was simply not preserved in this particular specimen?

Simply put: yes. As Briggs et al. (1997) write: "The surface of the skin is smooth and lacks any visible dermal structures (e.g. feathers, scales, hair)." What IS preserved is essentially a mineralized body outline, with some detailing (e.g. skin folds around the throat) preserved within. I'm inclined to think the throat dewlap/pouch was fairly smooth and featureless, something like a pelican (and so were the descriptors, for that matter).
Hope that helps,

Jordan Mallon

Undergraduate Student, Carleton University
Vertebrate Paleontology & Paleoecology

Paleoart website: http://www.geocities.com/paleoportfolio/
AIM: jslice mallon

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