Pronunciation: HESS-per-OR-nee-THOY-deez
Meaning: Western bird form
Author/s: Hartman et al. (2019)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Wyoming, USA
Discovery Chart Position: #1007
Hesperornithoides miessleri
(Miessler's Western Bird Form)Etymology
Hesperornithoides is derived from the Greek "hesper" (West, referring to its discovery in the American West), "ornis" (bird), and "oeides" (form, likeness).
The species epithet, miessleri, honours the Miessler family, for their support and hospitality.
Discovery
The remains of Hesperornithoides were discovered at "Jimbo Quarry" in the middle portion of the Morrison Formation near Douglas, Converse County, Wyoming, USA, by members of the Tate Geological Museum in the summer of 2001. The quarry is located on private land, but the fossils were donated in 2005 to the Big Horn Basin Foundation (which merged with the Wyoming Dinosaur Center in 2016 to form The Wyoming Dinosaur Center, Inc).The holotype (WYDICE-DML-001, formerly WDC DML-001) is a largely complete skull and associated skeletal elements. The specimen was found as overburden was removed during the excavation of a sauropod called Supersaurus vivianae. The manner of its discovery was as unfortunate as it was fortuitous, because excavators didn't expect it to be there, so much of its delicately preserved skeleton was damaged or lost.
