PBDB Taxon

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Hesperornis

Reptilia - Hesperornithiformes

Taxonomy

Hesperornis was named by Marsh (1872) [Sepkoski's age data: K Sant K Camp-l Sepkoski's reference number: 1066]. Its type is Hesperornis regalis. It is the type genus of Hesperornidae.

It was assigned to Hesperornidae by Marsh (1872); to Odontolcae by Marsh (1875) and Marsh (1880); to Odontolcae by Zittel (1890); to Aves by Bakker (1986); to Hesperornithiformes by Chatterjee (1991), Sepkoski (2002) and Padian (2004); to Ornithuromorpha by O'Connor and Zelenkov (2013), O'Connor et al. (2014) and Wang et al. (2014); to Ornithurae by Norell and Clarke (2001), Chiappe (2002), Kurochkin et al. (2013) and Wang and Liu (2015); and to Hesperornithidae by Hay (1902), Hay (1930), Wetmore (1940), Wetmore (1956), Martin and Tate (1976), Martin (1984), Carroll (1988), Kurochkin (2000), Rees and Lindgren (2005) and Bell and Chiappe (2016).

Species

H. altus, H. bairdi, H. chowi, H. crassipes, H. gracilis, H. lumgairi, H. macdonaldi, H. mengeli, H. montanus, H. regalis (type species), H. rossicus

Synonyms

Lestornis was named by Marsh (1876).

It was synonymized subjectively with Hesperornis by Marsh (1880), Zittel (1890) and Hay (1902).

It was assigned to Odontornithes by Marsh (1876).
Hargeria was named by Lucas (1903). Its type is Hesperornis gracilis.

It was synonymized subjectively with Hesperornis by Martin (1984).

It was assigned to Hesperornithidae by Hay (1930) and Wetmore (1940).
Coniornis was named by Marsh (1893). Its type is Coniornis altus.

It was synonymized subjectively with Hesperornis by Martin (1984).

It was assigned to Apatornithidae by Shufeldt (1915); to Hesperornithidae by Hay (1902), Hay (1930), Wetmore (1940), Wetmore (1956) and Brodkorb (1971); and to Hesperornidae by Carroll (1988).

Synonymy list

Year	Name and author
1872	Hesperornis Marsh pp. 360-363
1875	Hesperornis Marsh p. 407
1876	Lestornis Marsh p. 509
1880	Hesperornis Marsh p. 187
1890	Hesperornis Zittel p. 827
1893	Coniornis Marsh p. 82 figs. 1-3
1902	Hesperornis Hay p. 521
1902	Coniornis Hay p. 522
1903	Hargeria Lucas p. 552
1915	Coniornis Shufeldt p. 12
1930	Hesperornis Hay p. 278
1930	Coniornis Hay p. 279
1930	Hargeria Hay p. 279
1940	Coniornis Wetmore p. 3
1940	Hesperornis Wetmore p. 3
1940	Hargeria Wetmore p. 4
1956	Coniornis Wetmore p. 4
1956	Hesperornis Wetmore p. 4
1971	Coniornis Brodkorb p. 39
1976	Hesperornis Martin and Tate, Jr. p. 64
1984	Hesperornis Martin p. 146
1986	Hesperornis Bakker p. 460
1988	Coniornis Carroll
1988	Hesperornis Carroll
1991	Hesperornis Chatterjee p. 328
2000	Hesperornis Kurochkin p. 544
2001	Hesperornis Norell and Clarke p. 183
2002	Hesperornis Chiappe p. 451 fig. 20.1
2002	Hesperornis Sepkoski
2004	Hesperornis Padian p. 213
2005	Hesperornis Rees and Lindgren p. 1322
2013	Hesperornis Kurochkin et al.
2013	Hesperornis O'Connor and Zelenkov
2014	Hesperornis O'Connor et al.
2014	Hesperornis Wang et al.
2015	Hesperornis Wang and Liu
2016	Hesperornis Bell and Chiappe

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Rank	Name	Author
kingdom	Animalia	()
—	Bilateria
—	Eubilateria	Ax 1987
—	Deuterostomia
phylum	Chordata	Haeckel 1874
subphylum	Vertebrata
superclass	Gnathostomata
—	Osteichthyes	()
subclass	Sarcopterygii	()
subclass	Dipnotetrapodomorpha	(Nelson 2006)
subclass	Tetrapodomorpha	()
—	Tetrapoda
—	Reptiliomorpha
—	Anthracosauria
subclass	Amphibiosauria	Kuhn 1967
—	Cotylosauria	()
—	Amniota
—	Sauropsida
class	Reptilia
subclass	Eureptilia	()
—	Romeriida
—	Diapsida	()
—	Archosauromorpha	(Huene 1946)
—	Crocopoda

Rank	Name	Author
—	Archosauriformes	Gauthier 1986
—	Eucrocopoda
—	Archosauria	()
informal	Avemetatarsalia
—	Ornithodira
—	Dinosauromorpha
—	Dinosauriformes
—	Dinosauria	()
—	Theropoda	()
—	Neotheropoda
—	Averostra	Paul 2002
—	Tetanurae
—	Coelurosauria	()
—	Maniraptora
—	Paraves
class	Aves
—	Pygostylia	Chiappe 2002
—	Ornithothoraces
—	Ornithuromorpha	Chiappe et al. 1999
subclass	Ornithurae
order	Hesperornithiformes	Fürbringer 1888
—	Hesperornithidae	()
genus	Hesperornis

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

G. †Hesperornis Marsh 1872

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†Hesperornis altus Marsh 1893

†Hesperornis bairdi Martin and Lim 2002

†Hesperornis chowi Martin and Lim 2002

†Hesperornis crassipes Marsh 1876

†Hesperornis gracilis Marsh 1876

†Hesperornis lumgairi Aotsuka and Sato 2016

†Hesperornis macdonaldi Martin and Lim 2002

†Hesperornis mengeli Martin and Lim 2002

†Hesperornis montanus Shufeldt 1915

†Hesperornis regalis Marsh 1872

†Hesperornis rossicus Nessov and Yarkov 1993

Invalid names: Coniornis Marsh 1893 [synonym], Hargeria Lucas 1903 [synonym], Lestornis Marsh 1876 [synonym]

Diagnosis

Reference	Diagnosis
S. Chatterjee 1991	Apomorphous features of Hesperornis (26) Reverse peg and socket joint between pterygoid and basipterygoid; (27) short broad pterygoid with narrow, elongated palatine.

Measurements

No measurements are available

Composition:

hydroxyapatiteo

Entire body:

yeso

Adult length:

10 to < 100o

Adult width:

1.0 to < 10o

Adult height:

1.0 to < 10o

Architecture:

compact or denseo

Ontogeny:

accretion, modification of partso

Grouping:

solitaryo

Environment:

marineo

Locomotion:

actively mobileo

Life habit:

aquaticg

Diet:

piscivoreg

Reproduction:

oviparouso

Dispersal:

direct/internalo

Dispersal 2:

mobileo

Comments:

see also Gudger 1944g

Created:

2009-01-04 11:39:19

Modified:

2009-01-05 19:23:39

Source: g = genus, o = order

References: Padian 1985, Bush and Bambach 2015, Marsh 1875

Age range: base of the Late/Upper Santonian to the top of the Lancian or 85.80000 to 66.00000 Ma

Collections (49 total)

Time interval	Ma	Country or state	Original ID and collection number
Late/Upper Cretaceous	100.5 - 66.0	USA (Kansas)	H. gracilis (156590) Lestornis crassipes (156589)
Coniacian - Campanian	89.8 - 72.1	USA (Alaska)	H. sp. (123520)
Early/Lower Coniacian - Santonian	89.3 - 83.6	USA (Kansas)	H. sp. (13301)
Late/Upper Santonian	85.8 - 83.5	USA (Kansas)	H. regalis (85284)
Campanian	83.6 - 72.1	Canada (Northwest Territories)	H. sp. (36384)
Campanian	83.6 - 72.1	Canada (Nunavut)	H. sp. (36383)
Campanian	83.6 - 72.1	Canada (Manitoba)	H. regalis (36710 36746)
Early/Lower Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	USA (South Dakota)	H. sp. (39388)
Early/Lower Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Canada (Northwest Territories)	H. regalis (106330 106331 106332 106334 106341) H. sp. (106437)
Early/Lower Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Sweden	H. sp., H. rossicus (102883)
Early/Lower Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Russian Federation (Volgograd)	H. sp., H. rossica (85286)
Early/Lower Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Canada (Manitoba)	H. regalis (193919 193921 193924) H. regalis, H. chowi (193926 193927) H. regalis, H. chowi, H. macdonaldi (193925) H. regalis, H. lumgairi (193922) H. regalis, H. mengeli (193923) H. sp. (36446 193931 193932 193933 193934 193935 193936 193937) H. sp., H. chowi (193929) H. sp., H. macdonaldi (193930) H. sp., H. regalis, H. macdonaldi (193920)
Early/Lower Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Russian Federation (Saratov)	H. rossicus, Hesperornithiformes indet. (141001) H. sp. 2 (65036)
Early/Lower Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	USA (Montana)	H. montana (85283)
Early/Lower Campanian - Middle Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	USA (South Dakota)	H. regalis (77316) H. sp. (107676)
Early/Lower Campanian - Middle Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Canada (Manitoba)	H. sp., H. rossicus, H. chowi (193928)
Late/Upper Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	USA (Arkansas)	H. sp. (193918)
Middle Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Canada (Alberta)	H. regalis (36379)
Middle Campanian - Late/Upper Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	USA (Montana)	H. sp. (50825)
Middle Campanian - Late/Upper Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	USA (Arkansas)	H. sp. (193917)
Late/Upper Campanian - Early/Lower Maastrichtian	83.5 - 66.0	Canada (Northwest Territories)	H. sp. (36445)
Lancian	70.6 - 66.0	USA (Montana)	H. sp. (14580)