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Vertebrates: Birds: Bird Tooth |
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Written by Keith Minor
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Bird Tooth (Genus indet. species indet.) 
Remarks - Brinkman, et al. (2002) have tentatively referred this tooth taxon to Baptornis sp.
- What is extraordinary about hesperornithiforms is that their sternums had no keels and their forelimbs were greatly reduced, while their hindlimbs were enlarged: They were flightless swimming birds! Hesperornis was Baptornis's bigger cousin.
- The locations of a couple reports (from the Pierre Shale in central South Dakota) even suggest that these birds ventured out hundreds of miles away from land... incredible!
- Baptornis is known only from post-cranial elements and some non-avian theropods have recently been found that have similar teeth (see ref's below), so the taxonomic position of this tooth will remain unknown until a skull with teeth is found.
- Data compiled by Lee Garrison
General Info Stratigraphic Occurrence - Montana Group, Hell Creek Formation of Montana
- Judith River Group, Judith River Formation of Montana
Age - The Hesperornithiforms from the northern Western Interior range from the Middle Campanian to the Latest Cretaceous (~71̵ 65 mya).
Geographic Occurrence (not an all-inclusive list) - Alberta, Canada
- Brule County, South Dakota
- Carter County, Montana
Remarks For more information, see: -
Sankey, J. T.; Brinkman, D. B.; Guenther, M.; Currie, P. J. 2002. Small Theropod and Bird Teeth from the Late Cretaceous (Late Campanian) Judith River Group, Alberta. Journal of Paleontology 76(4), 762; fig. 5.35-5.38 (very close to specimen shown above). -
Xu, Xing; Zhou, Zhonghe; Wang, Xiaolin. 2000. The Smallest Known Non-Avian Theropod Dinosaur. Nature 408, 705-70 -
Hwang, S. H.; Norell, M. A.; Qiang, J. & Keqin, G. 2002. New Specimens of Microraptor ahoaianus (Theropoda: Dromaeosauridae) from Northeastern China. American Museum Novitates. 3381, pp. 1-44, fig 5 (close-up of dentary teeth).
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 31 July 2008 )
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