Halimornis

sea bird

• hali- · Greek · of the sea (from hals/halos, 'sea')
• ornis · Greek · bird

The name combines Greek roots for "sea" and "bird". It refers to the fact that the fossil was found in marine rocks (the Mooreville Chalk), unusual for an enantiornithine bird, a group mostly known from non-marine deposits. The type species is Halimornis thompsoni.

Named by

Chiappe, Lamb and Ericson

Year named

2002

Period

Late Cretaceous

Stage

Campanian

Found in

Mooreville Chalk, Alabama, USA

An enantiornithine bird, so it is an early avian dinosaur rather than a non-avian dinosaur. The exact age range within the Santonian–Campanian for the Mooreville Chalk is uncertain, so the stage given is approximate.