Pronunciation: no-MIN-gee-uh
Meaning: for Nomingiin
Author/s: Barsbold et al. (2000)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Gobi Desert, Mongolia
Discovery Chart Position: #469
Nomingia gobiensis
The tail of Nomingia consists of just 24 vertebrae meaning that, amongst theropod dinosaurs, only the tail of Caudipteryx, with 22 vertebrae, is shorter. It is also the first known non-bird dinosaur to sport a pygostyle or "parsons nose", formed by the last five tail vertebrae being fused into a single plate. In birds, the pygostyle supports long feathers that provide stability and control during flight. Nomingia, however, is an oviraptorosaur, and they couldn't fly due to (amongst other things) tiny wings and lots of heavy muscle, the most notable being a massive "caudofemoralis"—attached to both thigh and tail—which is a power pack for explosive acceleration.
(for Nomingiin, from the Gobi)Etymology
Nomingia is named for the Nomingiin region of the Gobi Desert.
The species epithet, gobiensis (GO-bee-EN-sis),
is derived from "Gobi" (for the Gobi Desert) and the Latin "-ensis" (from).
Discovery
The remains of Nomingia were discovered in the Nemegt Formation at Bugeen Tsav (aka Bugin Tsav, Bugiin Tsav), Bayankhongor Province, Gobi Desert, Mongolia, by the Mongolian-Japanese Palaeontological Expedition in 1994.The holotype (GIN 100/119, referred to as GIN 940824 by Barsbold et al. 2000a) is an incomplete skulless skeleton consisting of a series of 13 back, 5 hip and 24 tail vertebrae, 17 tail chevrons, 10 fragmentary ribs, a virtually complete pelvis, a left thigh, and both calfs and shins.
Persons, Currie and Norell referred a second pygostyle (MPC-D 102/5), from the Nemegt Formation at Western Sayr, to Nomingia in 2014.
