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Hesperornithidae

Hesperornithidae

Overview

Hesperornithidae Marsh, 1872

Common Name: 

Extant/Extinct

Key morphological features: These birds had strong legs built for swimming.

        SIZE:

Paleoecology: Hesperornithidae were common north of Kansas along the Western Interior Seaway, possibly preferring prey in cooler waters.

        MOBILITY: Mobile

        FEEDING MODE: Carnivore

        HABITAT: Epifaunal

Sources:

Everhart, M. J., 2005. Oceans of Kansas: A Natural History of the Western Interior Sea. Indiana University Press, Bloomington. 322 pp.


Genera of Hesperornithidae present in the Cretaceous of the Western Interior Seaway